What is Baijiu?
How can baijiu be the most popular spirit and the most unknown?
Alcohol is a delicacy shared throughout history, spanning the globe with its influence. With a long, storied history, the prevalence of alcoholic beverages is as present as ever. This stands incredibly accurate within China.
Two years ago, I moved to Yantai, China, to begin working as an English teacher (typical, I know). I consider myself an average drinker; I’m not too crazy, but I enjoy a good soju & beer mix.
The first day I was in China, my employer took me to eat at her home alongside her brother (my good friend), mother, and father. We had a rather traditional Shandong lunch of braised prawns (红烧大虾), steamed & stuffed tofu (一品豆腐), and an assortment of other dishes.
Suddenly, my boss’ father plopped down a gallon jug of a transparent liquid with a fire-red logo. I asked if it was water, and I was met with laughs. They told me it was baijiu (白酒). It was my first time seeing the drink, and I was more than curious due to their reactions.
We drank together, and at first, it took me back to my headache-induced university-cheap vodka days (shout-out, Svedka). The taste of the baijiu was incredibly strong, a little too intense for some, but an experience in itself.
The brand we had that day was the popular Wǔliángyè (五粮液), a substantial 68% alcohol that seared my throat as it went down. We took about seven or eight shots together. It’s safe to say that I didn’t touch baijiu for almost a year after that day.
Over time, however, I would learn more and respect baijiu for what it is. It is a drink packed with a rich history and deep cultural significance. This is a history worth remembering and appreciating, as baijiu is the “Drink of China.”
Early Alcohol in China
To fully grasp the cultural impact of baijiu, it is essential to take a look at the history of alcoholic beverages in China as a whole.
Sources recount that the first-ever alcoholic beverage in history was brewed in the geographical position of China long before the actual cultivation of any empire or official state.
Believed to be created by the ancient Jiahu culture of today’s Henan Province, the pioneering brewers made a drink with rice, honey, grapes, and hawthorn fruit. This original iteration of the glass would last for centuries, as the first partakers would claim the effects of consuming said alcohol would open a channel to communicate with spirits and entities of the past and future. Confucious echoed this in his legendary work, the Book of Rites (论语).
Later, within the first millennium BCE, many drinks continued to be consumed, including jiu (酒), the base word for alcohol in Chinese mandarin.
Today's drinking culture started in the first millennium CE once the major kingdoms formed the powerful empire we learn about today. Trading, communing, and even commissioning their brewers to cultivate drinks to show their power and influence.
Early distilling-like practices date back to the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD). During this time, the dynasty would use qu (曲) to help ferment their alcohol. This period is considered the first actual golden age of Chinese alcohol, ushering in a stage of the more excellent production of different types of spirits.
Baijiu’s Inception
Many scholars, including Henry J. Antkiewicz and Zhu Gong mention that baijiu was more commonly called shamshu (三燒) until around the 1970s. However, for ease of reading, I will continue to refer to the spirit as baijiu.
The Song Dynasty 960–1270 is believed to have originated what we now recognize as distilling in China—with theories of the methods originally being brought to the land by Middle East Trading, distilling the many different jius already handy created a hard liquor that packed a punch.
This is where most individuals believe today’s baijiu was born. Being relatively affordable and in great quantity at the time, the drink was initially loved by farmers, workers, and laymen. This juxtaposes huangjiu(黄酒), a much more expensive delicacy undistilled and favored by scholars and officials.
Sorghum(高粱), the preferred grain used in baijiu, still reigns today. The availability of said ingredient opened doors for people of all areas to create their distillation recipes and techniques.
Baijiu would travel through China like wildfire, captivating the people's hearts for its potency and relatively cheap price. The drink had such a strong presence that we can find many references to the beverage in several artistic and historic mediums.
Baijiu Accounted for the West
Visitors to China from the West recounted the sight and taste of baijiu and several other spirits. The Journey of William of Rubruck to the Eastern Parts of the World, 1253–1255, edited from Latin by William Woodville Rockhill in 1900, recounts four different beverages, including an early form of baijiu.
The earliest Western text I found through Passionate Foodie, an excellent blogger, was An Embassy Sent by the East-India Company of the United Provinces to the Grand Tartar Cham or Emperor of China by Johan Nieuhof (1665/1669). Within, Nieuhof accounts for a distilled drink made with milk instead of rice. There are records and even practices today of creating baijiu with milk as the main conduit, but it is far less common.
These are just two specific examples of foreigners being introduced to the fiery spirit that is baijiu, but of course, there are many more instances. Encounters such as these would help pave the way for the expansion of baijiu within China and the rest of the world.
Baijiu’s Expansion
After the fall of the Qing dynasty, the government went headstrong into sharing their most significant cultural drink around the globe.
In 1915, several alcohol producers were sent as a delegation to the United States, namely the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, to make connections and research possible improvements in alcoholic cultivation.
Upon return, the group learned several improvements to help push production and awareness forward. These advancements would make way for the further explosive growth that would follow the creation of the People’s Republic of China in 1949.
Baijiu and the People’s Republic of China
After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, baijiu saw its most significant signs of growth throughout its tenured history. With improved quality and outstanding consistency, it came burgeoning upon higher-ranking members of society.
These individuals include Zhou Enlai, the former Premier of the PRC, who would partake in the beverage openly. Through these associations with people of power, baijiu finally surpassed huangji and became a staple of society's workers and the powerful.
As the Chinese economy strengthened, all aspects of the baijiu business were improved, creating a stage where regional distilleries were built across China.
Baijiu Today
Although not nearly as popular or well-known in the western world today, baijiu continues to be the alcoholic beverage of China. Many enthusiasts comment that baijiu is “The most popular alcohol in the world, yet the most unknown.” This distinction holds for me as I had never heard about baijiu until I stepped foot in China.
Now in the modern world, countless successful brands have lasted the test of time and continue to push business boundaries. One example of possibly the most popular is Máotái Baijiu (茅台酒). Primarily distilled in the Maotai town of Guizhou province, the brand’s style originated during the Qing dynasty. A staple of the alcohol business in China, the red bottle resembling lighter fluid is recognizable anywhere.
Máotái is just one of many examples of a baijiu brand succeeding within China. But what about outside of it? Vinn Distillery, run by the Ly family, has been selling baijiu since 2009. With their original recipe, they have been supplying the Pacific Northwest and most of the United States with their brew.
Prominent as ever with older generations, younger people are beginning to stray away from the traditional fireball of a spirit. The strength and flavor of the drink are pushing the younger Chinese generation towards drinks including soju, whiskey, alcoholic spritzers, and of course, beer. There is a common misconception that baijiu doesn’t mix well with other alcohols, but there are some excellent mix recipes that I plan to touch on in the future.
Baijiu is a drink that has a beautiful, rich history that spans millennia. Every time you drink it, you taste years and years of hard work, cultivation, and derivation of the first alcoholic drinks ever produced. If you haven’t tried baijiu yet, I highly suggest you look out for it and try it. If not for the taste or buzz, then for the experience.
