Sake? No! It’s Sachi, the tofu whey wine

Sachi, the world’s first soy alcoholic beverage, is a tofu whey wine. It has half the calories of regular grape wine and is rich in isoflavones.

In 2017 a PhD student in the Food Science and Technology program developed a beverage with his advisor at the National University of Singapore. And it’s not just an alcoholic beverage, it’s also a case of upcycling, as it’s made from waste from the production of tofu, the soy “cheese” widely consumed in Asia. Tofu whey wine goes by the name of Sachi.

PhD student Chua Jian Yong (left) and Professor Liu Shao Quan (right)

The newly-formed phD opened the company SinFooTech and the tofu whey wine left the laboratory and gained market shelves. You can’t even imagine the joy I feel when I see products leaving the university and becoming accessible to the world!

Sachi: available in four flavors, it contains 5.8% alcohol by volume.

Turning whey waste into beverages

To produce tofu, it is necessary to coagulate boiled soy milk, cool it and press it into a solid block, as a result of this pressing we obtain the whey. The disposal of whey as untreated waste creates environmental pollution, as its proteins and soluble sugars contribute to the depletion of oxygen in waterways. With increasing adherence to vegan and flexitarian diets, tofu consumption has also increased, generating even more waste.

Upcycling tofu whey is a way to reduce pollutant disposal, in addition to generating economic returns for companies. The phD student designed a new fermentation technique that fully uses tofu whey without generating waste, converts its characteristic odor into a fruity aroma and prolongs its shelf life. After fermentation, the bound isoflavones present in the whey become free isoflavones, more easily absorbed by the human body. The process of making the alcoholic beverage takes about three weeks.

What about cow’s milk whey?

We’ve already talked about another whey-based drink here, Black Cow, vodka made with cow’s milk whey from cheese production. Since then, the company has grown and expanded its line of products.

Black Cow’s version with strawberries is made with non-standard fruits that would be discarded by producers.

Sources: NUS News, Food & Wine, Business Insider, Food Matters Live