Snake sake?

Edit: It's Habushu, a version of awamori with snakes, see here.

I'm really wondering how the first folks who made Habushu discovered it.

"Hey! We caught a snake, let's drown it in sake!"

Reader-added tags include "Unbelievable habushu", "Mamushishu and habushu" (both snake wines, but two different species of viper), and "Discount (not saying it's cheap)".

The survey reveals just the tipple of the iceberg:

Which do you prefer?
• Happoshu
• Beer
• Japanese sake
• Whiskey
• Wine

GiantCaveMushroom said:

I'm really wondering how the first folks who made Habushu discovered it.

"Hey! We caught a snake, let's drown it in sake!"

Maybe they want to pickle it, since alcohol is a good anti bacterial agent.. After they pickled the snake, they thought that it was such a shame to throw away the liquor used in pickling, thus they drank it, and found out that the taste is altered.. Just my half-asleep theory though..

TunaMayo said:

Maybe they want to pickle it, since alcohol is a good anti bacterial agent.. After they pickled the snake, they thought that it was such a shame to throw away the liquor used in pickling, thus they drank it, and found out that the taste is altered.. Just my half-asleep theory though..

Somehow I think it was along the lines of "Oh, sake in this jar tastes unusual but good, I wonder if there's something special about iOH F**K THERE'S A SNAKE INSIDE" :3

All ideas seem fairly plausible. Snakes, like many animals, can wander into places that we wouldn't expect, though I don't know enough about native snake species that were around back during the origins of Habushu, or if Habushu was discovered/invented independently in Japan or was carried over from other cultures (which brings in the possibility that this may have been the product of an old and elaborate practical joke). And, although I am also unsure about how common eating snakes was back during the time this was discovered/invented, someone desperate enough for food probably would consider pickling just to ensure a semi-stable personal food supply. But, of course, you always have to consider people doing something just to see what would happen. We are very good at that as a species.

Edit: Augh! Atrocious grammar on my part.

Incidentally, it's safe to drink because the ethanol decomposes the venom's proteins and renders it inactive.

CinderBH said:

Incidentally, it's safe to drink because the ethanol decomposes the venom's proteins and renders it inactive.

Which means the real question is how many bad batches did they go through to figure out how long the snake needed to be in there before it became safe...

The_Shadow said:

Which means the real question is how many bad batches did they go through to figure out how long the snake needed to be in there before it became safe...

If memory serves me right, even raw snake venom is only dangerous when injected directly into one's bloodstream and can be consumed orally with minimal risk. As long as one doesn't have an ulcer, digestive acids and enzymes neutralize the venom long before it can get absorbed into one's system.

Not that I'd willingly drink the stuff in any case, mind you.

iridescent_slime said:

If memory serves me right, even raw snake venom is only dangerous when injected directly into one's bloodstream and can be consumed orally with minimal risk. As long as one doesn't have an ulcer, digestive acids and enzymes neutralize the venom long before it can get absorbed into one's system.

Not that I'd willingly drink the stuff in any case, mind you.

Interesting... good to know.