Baijiu Cold Facts: What Season is Most Suitable for Baijiu Brewing? Who to Choose When You Can't Afford Maotai?
Baijiu as a traditional gift for Chinese people's reciprocities, without baijiu, there is no complete feast. The most favored type is fragrant baijiu. But do you know whether fragrant baijiu is suitable for winter brewing? Actually, no, because winter is not the best brewing season, low temperature will affect the growth of microorganisms.
China has a vast territory with complex environment, almost every place has its own delicious wines. Brewing is to utilize the fermentation effect of microorganisms or enzymes, to make alcoholic beverages from agricultural products. Of course, the actual operation is far more complex than the literal meaning. Generally, baijiu needs to go through: selection of materials, making, fermentation, distillation, aging, and canning, these several steps.
In 2019, '' (jiǔjiu, fragrant baijiu) was a hot word in the industry, so popular fragrant baijiu, in every season, when does it brew?
Authentic fragrant baijiu brewing emphasizes the '12987' process, the brewing production cycle is one production cycle per year, it is the most complex brewing process in Chinese baijiu. From Zhongyuan down to the next year losing residue, it takes through the spring and autumn, during which there were two times of adding materials, nine times of boiling, eight times of fermentation, seven times of taking wine, utilizing the change of the four seasons, to achieve the purpose of different characteristics of each round of wine and coordinated proportion.
For those who know about baijiu, they should know about making. Our fragrant baijiu must be made during the Dragon Boat Festival. Why? 'Dragon Boat Festival, May 5th, the Dragon Boat Festival, the temperature rises, it is beneficial for making' Dragon Boat Festival is on May 5th of the Dragon Boat Festival, Maotai town's wheat matures in April of the lunar calendar, the Dragon Boat Festival is used to dry fresh wheat for making. At the time of the Dragon Boat Festival, the local temperature rises, the temperature of the workshops is 40° above, which is beneficial for the growth of microorganisms, these microorganisms are mixed into the , which can secrete a lot of enzymes, which are actually 'natural catalysts', to accelerate the conversion of starch and protein into sugar.
So, temperature has a very important influence on microorganisms, if it brews in particularly cold weather, it will suppress their growth, and the temperature control at 20-30 degrees is the most suitable. Our most loved fragrant baijiu has a production cycle of one year, and it also needs to be stored in a cellar for 4-5 years, feeling the changes of the four seasons, which is why the wine body and taste are fuller and longer-lasting than other fragrances.
Some people want to try fragrant baijiu, and they will definitely think of flying Tian Maotai first, but now, Maotai is expensive and difficult to buy, even if bought, there are concerns about counterfeiting. If you can't drink Maotai, can you drink delicious fragrant baijiu? Actually, no, you can try Gu Xiaojiu's Maotai 1998, this wine's reputation and quality are the best in this price range, as an entry-level fragrant baijiu, it is completely safe to try.
