Rice: First Thrilled, Now Disappointed

[Saraneth]

Greetings! I've returned to the game after a two-year hiatus to check out all the wonderful updates. I also play out of Japan.

When I saw that rice had been added as a crop, I was positively thrilled! I've always felt that, along with wheat, it is absolutely a staple crop that should be part of any farming game, and certainly one that is necessary to share the game with all my friends here in Japan.

I was somewhat off-put by the description of the crop as a "spring" crop. (Like wheat and other grains, real rice is a summer crop, and the argument could be made that it's an early autumn crop.) But many crops in Stardew Valley don't follow their real world counterparts, so that can be put aside.

However, I was dismayed by the wiki page that makes no mention of putting rice in the cask for sake. This should be a given, especially with so few other recipes that use rice in game, and with sake as much of a ancient and standard drink as beer is for wheat. Surely this is just an oversight that will be fixed?? :(

 

[LRangerR]

Hahahaha, I very much agree with this as well. This was mentioned by another player when i posted about the "Potato Alcohol" Pam wanted wasn't vodka. Perhaps someone will make a sugarcane crop as well which we can turn into rum and mill for sugar.

 

[TrailerParkThor]

Surprised this wasn't thought of when rice was added, but I concur. Sake would be amazing. Even if it just produced Rice Wine rather than Rice Juice, that would be much better.

 

[imnvs]

Okay, the real problem here... WTF even IS rice juice???

 

[Ereo]

Or potato juice? Amaranth juice?

There's a lot of vegetables that don't make a good juice...

 

[LRangerR]

Okay, the real problem here... WTF even IS rice juice???

Rice resin maybe?

 

[Akemisora]

Sake for the kegs, rice vinegar for preserve jars. I think that's the most realistic products.

 

[goboking]

Or potato juice? Amaranth juice?

There's a lot of vegetables that don't make a good juice...

Maybe they need to reclassify rice and wheat as grains or cereals and have them follow their own formulas when placed in kegs and preserve jars.

 

[TrailerParkThor]

Maybe they need to reclassify rice and wheat as grains or cereals and have them follow their own formulas when placed in kegs and preserve jars.

Grains should have their own category. We have Wheat, Rice, and Amaranth and they need their own Artisan product from Preserve Jars (Vinegar!). Rice and Amaranth also need unique products from the Keg. If Wheat produces beer, why wouldn't Rice produce Sake, and Amaranth make Purple Ale (Hazy Ale?). We can also use grains to make Vinegar in the Preserve Jar. White Vinegar from Wheat will give the least amount of Energy/Health back. Rice Vinegar will be in the middle, and Vinegar (purple one) from Amaranth will give the most. While we're at it, would be nice to be able to make Apple Cider (an alcoholic beverage) from the Keg when using apples. Apple Cider could then be put in the Preserve Jar to make Apple Cider Vinegar. This would be a superfood that would provide a lot of Health/Energy back and maybe even some Status Effect resistance.

 

[LRangerR]

For some reason I thought you could make cider from apples, and was then disappointed when you couldn't.

As much as I believe that this should be a part of the core game, does anyone know if there's a mod for some of this yet?

 

[Saraneth]

Okay, the real problem here... WTF even IS rice juice???

If it's properly fermented, it's awesome.

In all seriousness, rice milk (which is essentially rice juice) has been pushed as a non-lactose alternative, but even in Asia has never really caught on, largely because it does not taste or cook in approximation to milk or other milk alternatives.

 

[Saraneth]

...Vinegar (purple one) from Amaranth will give the most...

If we're going by real world examples (wheat and hops for various beers, grapes for wine, and a rice for sake), then either grapes or wine should be used as the base for dark vinegar. It's how the one in your real world cabinet is made!

 

[TrailerParkThor]

Good point @Saraneth I would love to see wine used in that way, especially if it means my Apple Cider idea would be implemented as well. I do believe Amaranth should have it's own type of ale to make it more relevant though

 

[LRangerR]

I've never had amaranth ale, so idk what it tastes like. If it is a real t hing, i'd love to taste it, but if it isn't a real thing, i'd rather have it not be part of the game. This coming from a person who has been to many kinds of "fests".

 

[imnvs]

Amaranth is a grain, much like wheat and rice. It can easily be used to make alcohol... though I've never tasted any alcohols made with it either.

 

[Chnapy]

[Ackshually] If we want to get technical, amaranth is a pseudograin, like quinoa, or buckwheat. [/Ackshually]

Is a grain category really needed to deal with just these three though? Wheat's doing okay with just a special result when put in a keg. Rice could have the same thing, turning into sake in a keg, and generic vinegar in a jar. And kegged potatoes should obviously turn into vodka, I mean come on. I can't find any alcohol that's traditionally made from amaranth, but in recent years it's apparently been used to make both beers and stronger spirits

 

[imnvs]

Is a grain category really needed to deal with just these three though? Wheat's doing okay with just a special result when put in a keg.

Okay, pseudograin. Fair point.

What you say next is the more important part, though. I wasn't trying to suggest a grain category for crops, if that's how you took it, though I wouldn't oppose a suggestion to do so. In the same way that wheat is an exception, other things could be made exceptions too, sure, and that would be a sufficient and satisfactory way to update things.

 

[LRangerR]

I think people are just upset there's not more booze in the game. Not many mods for it either. Found one where gus sold a bunch of drinks, because bar, and another standalone mod that turned either rice or potatoes into the respective liquor, but nothing that adds all the booze that should exist.

So aside from vodka, sake, and cider, are there any other alcohols that should probably be included in the game? (i still want sugarcane and rum. seriously, how do we have pirates and not rum?)

 

[mouse]

As much as I believe that this should be a part of the core game, does anyone know if there's a mod for some of this yet?

Are there ever. Artisan Valley adds sake, cider, pulque, kefir, umeshu, and more, just to the keg alone -- but there's also a still. Then you have Starbrew Valley that adds a dizzying array of cocktails and such. Thanks largely to PPJA projects, "more stuff" is not something that this game lacks in mods, hehe.

Edited to add

(i still want sugarcane and rum. seriously, how do we have pirates and not rum?)

Also rum from sugarcane :)

(I'd love just a few more things to do with core game items in vanilla, though. When PPJA adds more stuff, it REALLY adds more stuff :D )

 

[LRangerR]

Also rum from sugarcane :)

Pretty much how i feel about things summed up in a gif:

Spoiler