Traditional Distilling Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
In ancient times distilled liquor was called "shaojiu" (burnt liquor) or "chunjiu" (mellow liquor); it evolved originally from low-alcohol rice wine, took shape around the Song dynasty, and has a history of more than eight hundred years. For thousands of years Baofeng liquor has been much loved by men of letters and painters, and many moving stories have grown out of it; Li Bai, the "poet immortal" of the Tang dynasty, and Wu Daozi, the "sage of painting", both left works connected with Baofeng liquor. Baofeng liquor has repeatedly been rated a national-level quality famous liquor, and in 2002 it obtained registered certification for national designation-of-origin protection. Since the end of the twentieth century, large quantities of low-priced liquor made by modern techniques have been dumped on the market, dealing Baofeng liquor a severe blow; its brewing technique urgently needs protection and support.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
In the brewing of distilled liquor, starchy or sugary raw materials such as grains and tubers are first made into fermented mash (unfiltered liquor) or fermented into a cloudy fermented liquid (muddy liquor), which is then distilled into spirits. Distilled liquor is white or slightly yellow and transparent, and is therefore commonly called "baijiu" (white liquor). Its aroma is fragrant and pure, it is smooth, sweet and clean on the palate, and its alcohol content is relatively high, making it a strong liquor. Judged by the raw materials used and the saccharifying and fermenting agents, distilled-liquor brewing involves different techniques using daqu (large qu), xiaoqu (small qu) or fuqu (bran qu). Distilled liquor is made mainly from grain and can be divided into sorghum liquor, maize liquor and other types; sorghum, being high in starch and moderate in protein, is the most suitable for brewing distilled liquor. China's distilled liquor is produced mainly in Sichuan, Guizhou, Henan, Hebei, Shenyang, Jilin, Beijing and other regions, and the formation of its brewing methods is closely related to the local grains (abundant sorghum), climate (cold or humid), water quality and living customs. Baofeng liquor belongs to the light-aroma (qingxiang) type of baijiu and is named for Baofeng County in Henan Province. Its brewing history can be traced back to the age of Xia Yu and reached its height during the Tang and Song dynasties. Baofeng liquor uses locally produced high-quality sorghum as its raw material and a qu made from a mixture of barley, wheat and peas; it is brewed by the "clear steaming, twice clearing" process together with fermentation in ground-set earthen jars and ageing in pottery jars. The liquor is fragrant and pure, sweet and smooth on the palate, with a long aftertaste. The key steps of the traditional Baofeng brewing technique are entirely manual; the process is complex and the costs are high.
Blending the qu from three grains
Local sorghum is the grain, while barley, wheat and peas are blended into the qu, which acts as both saccharifying and fermenting agent and sets the clean style.
Clean steaming and the second clean run
Clean steaming with a second clean run, worked together with pit fermentation and jar ageing, keeps the lees clearly separated so the light character can emerge.
Fermentation in the buried jars
Slow fermentation in ceramic jars supplies the stable lees for the clean-steam sequence, the slight permeability letting ageing begin even as it ferments.
Ageing in earthen jars
The final resting stage before bottling follows pit fermentation in the jars, turning the raw new spirit into something mellow and long in finish.
Hand work at the decisive stages
Every decisive stage is done by hand, which keeps the style stable but makes the process costly and hard to match against cheap modern wine.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
By aroma type, distilled liquor can further be divided into sauce-aroma, light-aroma, strong-aroma, rice-aroma, composite-aroma and other types.
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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
The value of Baofeng liquor is attested by several mutually corroborating threads. Its brewing history can be traced back to the age of Xia Yu and reached its height during the Tang and Song dynasties, and Li Bai, the poet immortal of the Tang dynasty, and Wu Daozi, the sage of painting, both left works connected with Baofeng liquor, showing that this wine country had long held a place in the writings of men of letters; that Baofeng liquor has repeatedly been rated a national-level quality famous liquor and in 2002 obtained registered certification for national designation-of-origin protection writes the place of origin and the craft together into institutional recognition. In brewing terms, Baofeng liquor belongs to the light-aroma type of baijiu and is named for Baofeng County in Henan Province; it uses locally produced high-quality sorghum as its raw material and a qu made from a mixture of barley, wheat and peas, and is brewed by the clear steaming, twice clearing process together with fermentation in ground-set earthen jars and ageing in pottery jars, giving a liquor that is fragrant and pure, sweet and smooth, with a long aftertaste. For thousands of years the Baofeng brewing technique has been passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth and by master-to-apprentice instruction, and in the process has been continually innovated and developed, showing a strong local cultural character. Its shortcomings are equally clear: the key steps of the traditional Baofeng brewing technique are entirely manual, the process is complex and the costs are high; since the end of the twentieth century, large quantities of low-priced liquor made by modern techniques have been dumped on the market, dealing Baofeng liquor a severe blow, and its brewing technique urgently needs protection and support.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Gao Jingyan 03-1409
- Shang Liyun 03-1410
- Qin Wenke 03-1411
- Li Yuheng 03-1412
- Lai Dengyi 03-1414
- Li Jiashun 03-1415
- Yang Dajin 05-2838
- Zhou Xinhu
- Li Tianhua
- Xu Zhancheng
- Zhao Deyi
- Li Zexia
- Lu Zhenying
- Zhao Dong
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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