Great Wall in 50 Objects

by William Lindesay

This book is intended as a step towards bridging this knowledge gap, but moreover it is a celebration of China’s marvellous traditional spirits. The study of baijiu – its various classifications, production techniques and distinctive characteristics – is a worthwhile pursuit for anyone interested in China or its alcohols. But research is no substitute for fieldwork. Those who hope to gain an advanced knowledge of baijiu must imbibe the potent Eastern brew as it was intended, namely in the company of others. To that end, readers will also find brief instructions on Chinese drinking etiquette. Although the specific distilleries and brands included within this collection by no means constitute an exhaustive representation of the tens of thousands of baijius available today, they should serve as a starting point for future connoisseurs.

  Baijiu is a spirit unlike anything else, well deserving of a place in the international spirits family. When one drinks baijiu, he or she participates in a tradition that spans more than seven thousand years. While it would be misleading to suggest that one can fully grasp the complexity and depth of the world’s most populous nation through its alcohol, this author wholeheartedly commends the attempt. Ganbei!

  US President Richard Nixon and Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai sharing a historic toast of Kweichow Moutai at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People in 19724

  WHAT MAKES A SPIRIT CHINESE?

  Foreign writing on baijiu tends to focus on its physical character – its faintly industrial bouquet, phenolic sweetness and oesophageal afterburn. While such descriptions are useful in terms of understanding the experience of imbibing Chinese spirits, they fail to capture the extraordinary richness of the category, or to define it.

  Chinese spirits are rooted in place, their specific characters highly dependent on local winemaking tradition and the available resources. The chemical processes required to create liquor – fermentation and distillation – are the same in any locale, but the techniques and ingredients used to carry out these reactions are what make Chinese alcohol unique.

  Fundamental to the process of making baijiu is the use of solid-state fermentation, which in turn requires solid-state distillation. What this means is that, unlike most Western grain alcohol production such as that of whisky, where yeast is added to sugary liquid broth to induce fermentation, Chinese alcohol is created within a solid mixture of grains. This requires a unique fermentation agent called qu (pronounced the same as the English ‘chew’) and a host of creative regional fermentation techniques.

  In addition to fermentation styles, raw ingredients are also essential. Chinese spirits use several grains seldom found in winemaking outside of Asia and Africa, most notably sorghum, rice and glutinous rice. Water, used in every step of production and generally comprising about half of the finished product, is of critical importance. The availability of a good water source has historically determined the location of China’s best baijiu distilleries.

  The combination of unique ingredients and techniques creates the flavours and aromas instantly recognisable in Chinese spirits. Subtle distinctions in material and process can produce great variation under the baijiu banner, and a number of sub-categories have emerged. So radical are the differences between baijiu and its Western counterparts, however, that Chinese spirits may rightly be said to represent an entirely distinct school of production.

  Baijiu may at first seem unusual, frightening even, to the foreign nose and palate. But the term baijiu denotes so wide a range of liquor that the patient drinker’s attempts will invariably be rewarded.

  Rice must first be steamed and cooled before the addition of qu triggers saccharification and fermentation5

  The process of steaming grains prior to fermentation at Chuangu Distillery, Sichuan

  All photographs in this book are copyright Derek Sandhaus except where indicated below:

  Getty/John Dominis: 4

  Hetrick, Todd: 1

  Jiugui Liquor Co., Ltd.: 3

  Wuliangye Group I and E Co., Ltd.: 2

  Zhejiang Gu Yue Long Shan Shaoxing Wine Co., Ltd.: 5

  THE BEGINNING

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