Traditional brewing techniques of distilled liquor

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: traditional brewing techniques of distilled liquor

Applicant: Gulin County, Sichuan Province

Project No.: 927

Project No.: VIII - 144

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: traditional art

Region: Sichuan Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Gulin County, Sichuan Province

Protection unit: Sichuan gulinlang distillery Co., Ltd

Introduction to the traditional brewing technology of distilled liquor (traditional brewing technology of gulinlang liquor)

Applicant: Gulin County, Sichuan Province

Distilling liquor brewing is to make grains, potatoes and other raw materials rich in starch or sugar into fermented grains (unfiltered liquor) or fermented mash (turbid liquor), and then distill them into liquor. Distilled liquor is white or yellowish transparent, and is commonly known as "Baijiu". Its fragrance is pure, the entrance is soft, sweet and clean, and the alcohol content is high. According to the use of raw materials and saccharifying starter, there will be different brewing techniques of Daqu, Xiaoqu and bran Qu when distilling liquor. The materials of distilled liquor are mainly grain, which can be divided into sorghum liquor and corn liquor. Sorghum has high starch content and moderate protein content, which is the best for making distilled liquor. According to flavor type, distilled liquor can be divided into Maotai flavor type, Qingxiang type, Luzhou flavor type, rice flavor type, Fuxiang type and so on. Distilled liquor, called "Shaojiu" and "mellow liquor" in ancient times, was originally evolved from rice wine with low alcohol content. It was formed in Song Dynasty and has a history of more than 800 years. China's distilled liquor is mainly produced in Sichuan, Guizhou, Henan, Hebei, Shenyang, Jilin, Beijing and other regions. The formation of its brewing technology is closely related to the local grain (rich in sorghum), climate (cold or humid), water quality and living customs.

The traditional brewing technology of gulinlang liquor is handed down in gulinlang County, Sichuan Province. It is a traditional technology inherited by gulinlang distillery for one hundred years. During the Northern Song Dynasty, Fengqu liquor was produced in Gulin county. Since 1903, large-scale distiller's grains houses with Huichuan distiller's grains house and Jiyi distiller's grains house have appeared in Erlang town of the county. Their products are named "huishalang liquor", which comprehensively summarizes the characteristics of producing area and technology. In 1933, huishalang liquor was renamed "Langjiu". The brewing of Lang Liquor has the remarkable characteristics of "four high and one long", that is, high temperature koji making, high temperature accumulation saccharification, high temperature fermentation, high temperature distilling and long-term storage. In the production process, it needs two times of grain feeding, eight times of koji fermentation, seven times of distillation, more than three times of cave storage, and finally the traditional technology of careful blending and seasoning.

The traditional brewing techniques of gulinlang liquor have been handed down from generation to generation in the way of oral and psychological instruction among the local folk craftsmen. Among them, the techniques of hand-made koji making in May Dragon Boat Festival, grain feeding in September Chongyang, high-temperature production, and promoting the aging of new wine making in cave storage have unique characteristics, which have high historical value in the development of wine making culture in southern Sichuan and Northern Guizhou. Gulin Baijiu traditional brewing technology is good at cultivating unique microorganism flora. It shows excellent traditional technology and provides a useful reference for the brewing of Maotai flavor liquor.