Chinese wine
From Free net encyclopedia
Jiu (Template:Zh-cp) is the Chinese word that refers to all alcoholic beverages. This word has often been translated into English as "wine", although the meaning is closer to "alcoholic beverage" or "liquor." The same Chinese character is also used in Japanese, where it is pronounced sake or shu, and in Korean, where it is pronounced "ju."
Although not a traditional product, grape wine (葡萄酒 pútáo jiǔ, lit. "grape wine") is increasingly produced and consumed in China due to Western influence. Image:Chinese wines.jpg
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Production
Ingredients
Chinese wines are traditionally made from grains. Wines from southern China are typically made from glutinous rice, while those from northern China are mostly made of wheat, millet, sorghum, or occasionally Job's tears. Wine may occasionally be made or flavoured with fruits, but this is rather rare. Medicinal herbs and spices are often added to Chinese wine. These additives not only impart a reddish, brown, or green colour, but also modify the taste and flavour of the liquor itself. Some production processes also create wines that are dark tan in colour without the addition of herbs. Due to their reddish-brown to beige tones, these wines are collectively known as huáng jiǔ (黄酒, lit. "yellow liquor").
Fermentation
Chinese wines are made using a multistep fermentation process similar to the way Japanese sake is produced. A mash of water, steamed glutinous rice, and other grains is inoculated with rice that has already been cultivated with the mold Aspergillus oryzae or molds of the Rhizopus genus (Chinese: 麴霉菌, 曲霉菌, qū meí jùn; Japanese: 麹菌, koji-kin) and certain strains of Lactobacillus. When mixed into the mash the Aspergillus and Lactobacillus cultivates the mixture and converts the starch in the grains into sugars and lactic acid, respectively. This sweet and slightly sour liquid is drained and reserved, while additional water (and sometimes also malt) is added to the mixture. The process is repeated until the grains are exhausted.
Yeast is then added to this liquid in order to convert the sugars in the liquid to alcohol. The alcoholic liquid produced is then is allowed to continue to mature in earthenware jars for several months to several decades. The matured alcoholic liquid is then bottle and sold as "yellow liquor."
Distillation
Chinese "yellow liquor" is sometimes distilled for a more potent alcoholic drink called bái jiǔ (白酒, lit. "white liquor"), which can sometimes be as high as 70-80% alcohol.
The production of white liquor is so similar in color and mouth-feel to vodka that some foreigners refer to it as "Chinese vodka" or "Chinese white vodka." However, unlike vodka, Chinese white liquor is less thoroughly filtered, with gives each liquor its own unique and sometimes penetrating (or even somewhat harsh) flavour and fragrance.
Rice wines (under 20% alcohol)
- Mijiu (米酒, pinyin: mǐjiǔ) is the generic name for Chinese fermented rice wine, similar to Japanese sake. It is used for both drinking and cooking, and cooking mijiu often contains 1.5% salt.
- Fujian glutinous rice wine (福建糯米酒 fújiàn nuòmǐ jiǔ): made by adding a long list of expensive Chinese herbal medicine to glutinous rice and a low alcohol rice wine distill. The unique brewing technique uses another wine as raw material, instead of starting with water. The wine has an orange-red color. Alcohol content by volume: 18%.
- Huadiao jiu (花雕酒 huādiāo jiǔ, lit. "flowery carving wine"): a variety of yellow wine that originates from Shaoxing, Zhejiang. It is made of glutinous rice and wheat. This wine evolved from the Shaoxing tradition of burying nu'er hong wine (女儿红 nǚ'ér hóng, lit. "daughter red") underground when a daughter was born, and digging it up for the wedding banquet when the daughter was to be married. The containers would be decorated with bright colors as a wedding gift, and to make the gift more appealing, people started to use pottery with flowery carvings and patterns. Alcohol content by volume: 16%.
- Huadiao jiu, Nü'er hong, and Shaoxing jiu are basically made of the same wine except they are named differently depending on the age, the container and how they are used. It is not uncommon to have Huadiao aged 50 years or more.
Distilled liquors (30% alcohol or greater)
- Fen jiu (汾酒 fén jiǔ): this wine dates back to the Northern and Southern Dynasties (550 A.D.). It is the original Chinese white wine made from sorghum. Alcohol content by volume: 63–65%.
- Zhuyeqing jiu (竹葉青酒 zhúyè qīnq jiǔ, lit. "bamboo leaf green liquor"): this sweet wine is fen jiu brewed with a dozen or more selected Chinese herbal medicines. One of the ingredients is bamboo leaves which gives the wine a greenish color and its name. Alcohol content by volume: 46%.
- Maotai jiu (茅台酒 máotái jiǔ): this liquor has a production history of over 200 years, originally coming from Mao Tai, Guizhou. It is made from wheat and sorghum with a unique distilling process that involves seven iterations of the brewing cycle. This liquor became known to the world after winning a gold medal at the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco, California. Mao Zedong served maotai at state dinners during Richard Nixon's state visit to China. Alcohol content by volume: 54–55%.
- Gaoliang jiu (高粱酒 gāoliáng jiǔ): "Gaoliang" is the Chinese word for a specific type of sorghum. The wine originally comes from Dazhigu (大直沽, east of Tianjin) during the Ming Dynasty. Nowadays, Taiwan is a large producer of gaoliang jiu. Alcohol content by volume: 61–63%.
- Meiguilu jiu (玫瑰露酒 méiguīlòu jiǔ, lit. "rose essence liquor"): a variety of gaoliang jiu distilled with a special species of rose and crystal sugar. Alcohol content by volume: 54–55%.
- Wujiapi jiu (五加皮酒 wǔ jiā pí jiǔ): a variety of gaoliang jiu with a unique selection of Chinese herbal medicine added to the brew. Alcohol content by volume: 54–55%.
- Daqu jiu (大麴酒 dà qū jiǔ): Originally from Sichuan with 300 years of history. This wine is made with sorghum and wheat and is fermented for a long time. Alcohol content by volume: 52%.
- Yuk Bing Siu Zau (玉冰燒酒 Mandarin: yù bīng shāo jiǔ, less commonly known as 肉醪燒 Mandarin: ròu láo shāo): a Cantonese rice wine with over 100 years of history, made with steamed rice. After distillation, pork fat is stored with the wine but removed before bottling. Its name probably derives from the brewing process: in Cantonese, yuk ("jade") is a homophone of "meat", and bing means ice which describes the appearance of the pork fat floating in the wine. Cantonese rice wine breweries prospered in the Northern Song Dynasty, when the Foshan area was exempted from alcohol tax. Alcohol content by volume: 30%.
- Shuang Zheng Jiu (雙蒸酒 shuāng zhēng jiǔ, lit. "double distilled wine") and San Zheng Jiu (三蒸酒 sān zhēng jiǔ, lit. "triple distilled wine"): two varieties of rice wine from the Jiujiang area, made by distilling twice and three times respectively. Alcohol content by volume: 32% and 38–39% respectively.
- Sanhua jiu (三花酒 sānhuā jiǔ, lit. "three flowers wine"): a rice wine made in Guilin with allegedly over a thousand year history. It is famous for the fragrant herbal addition, and the use of spring water from Mount Elephant in the region. Alcohol content by volume: 55–57%.