Three of the Best Wines Available in China

China’s history of wine consumption dates back over 9000 years as well as is the first attested user of wild grapes in the process of brewing wine as well as producing the earliest known alcoholic beverage in the world. China’s increase in wine consumption is linked to the recent reforms and has become one of the biggest consumers of wine. If you are planning your next trip to China and are a connoisseur of wine, here are some of the most famous wines available in China along with a brief introduction about them.

Shaoxing Yellow Wine

Crafted using the very best glutinous wine from the yearly harvest as well as water from the pristine Mirror Lake in Shaoxing to produce this beautiful wine, this is one of the best wines you can find on your trip to China. With a mix of some of the rarest herbs in the yeast used for fermentation, such as knotgrass and other herbs, the wine is crafted by drenching and drying the grain. This semi-sec wine is orange or clear in color. It is extremely smooth, sweet and mellow and is brewed in mud-sealed and cellared earthen jars. Shaoxing Yellow Wine is used in cooking as well and is sold in a number of countries and regions and has a number of different varieties. The wine has an alcoholic content of around 16-17% and is served at a lukewarm temperature.

Jimo Old Wine

Also, known as laojiu, Jimo Old Wine is a mellow wine, used in sacrificial rites and socializing purposes and is produced in large quantities in China. A favorite of rulers and emperors, this is known as the jewel of Chinese wines. The wine is semi-sweet and is made from millet grown on the banks of Moshui river, ferment and mineral water from Laoshan and is crafted with ancient methods involving breaking the millet down to a paste by stirring it at moderate heat and after the process of fermentation and saccharinification, straining it. With a dark brown color having reddish purple hints, the wine has a 11.5% alcoholic content and 5% acidity.

Longyang Chen’gang

This is one of the oldest wines in China. Hailing from the Fujian province, this wine has a long history and the production combines all the highly skilled techniques of wine crafting. Brewed from the best quality glutinous rice and over four different fermentation ingredients, the process adds herbal ferments, granular ferments to create a sweet mash and Gutian red ferments and adding the wine in two phases. The wine so produced is sweet and has an alcohol content of around 14-16% as well as a sugar content of around 22.5-25%. Matured over three years, the wine is clear and amber colored. It is sweet and m0ellow in the mouth.

These are three of the best wines found in China as well as the history and brewing process behind each wine. So, do try out some of these incredible and famous wines on your next trip to China and experience the best of traditional Chinese wines.