As soon as he opens his mouth, he asks the waiter to bring the most expensive dishes, plus another jin of Lu liquor.
"Houses on the city walls, a city on the water; where the taverns glow red, the whole river shines bright." The city is named for its liquor, and the liquor thrives because of the city. "Liquor City" Luzhou is a liquor city upon the mountains and waters of the upper Yangtze. The passion of liquor, the solidity of the mountains, and the liveliness of the water blend as one by nature. The scenery here is like a painting, and a faint aroma of liquor drifts in the air, intoxicating all who come. Liquor is this city's beautiful veil.
"Fine brew wafts its fragrance from southern Shu; I invite the bright moon to drink among the flowers, and after three cups I am still not done, my spirits ever more elated..." Mention Luzhou, and one naturally thinks of Luzhou Laojiao. As the "ancestor of strong-aroma liquor and the grand master among liquors," Luzhou Laojiao's brewing actually involves eleven steps: removing the mash from the pit, mixing the ingredients, loading the steamer, distilling, watching the flowers to draw the liquor, unloading the steamer, measuring the water, spreading to cool, adding the starter, entering the pit, and sealing the pit. Then comes the next round of fermentation, and so the cycle repeats endlessly.
Not the slightest carelessness is allowed at any stage, so that the quality remains constant and always the same. Exquisite craftsmanship and rigorous procedures, this brewing spirit embedded in the very marrow, have created Luzhou Laojiao's standing in the world of top-tier baijiu brands and its fine reputation in the industry. Its representatives include Guojiao 1573, Tequ, Jiaoling Liquor, and Luzhou Gong.
Guojiao 1573: A Chinese baijiu appreciation-standard-grade strong-aroma organic baijiu. It uses the 1573 national-treasure pit cluster, built in 1573 AD and used continuously to this day, and is brewed entirely by hand through traditional brewing techniques.
Laojiao Tequ: A mid-to-high-end business liquor, a "China Time-Honored Brand," one of the "Four Great Famous Liquors," a typical representative of strong-aroma baijiu, and the only strong-aroma baijiu to have won the title of "China Famous Liquor" in successive editions. Its traditional brewing technique was included in the first batch of the "National Intangible Cultural Heritage List."
Jiaoling Liquor: A core strategic brand in the mid-price range. Luzhou Laojiao has more than 7,000 old pits that have been in continuous use for over 30 years, accounting for more than half of the total among all Chinese baijiu enterprises. With this incomparable resource advantage, it is able to brew the century-old Luzhou Laojiao Jiaoling Liquor.
Luzhou Gong: Classic strong aroma, a display of prosperity, a bold show of strength! A 1800ml extra-large bottle of fine brew and treasure, with a mellow body, elegant aroma, and full, rich flavor.
Luzhou Laojiao's extraordinary quality, enduring without decline, has won high recognition and praise from consumers. The famous Qing dynasty poet Zhang Wentao (courtesy name Chuanshan) said: "To dispel sorrow I rely on Shu liquor; propped up drunk, my face lights up with joy."
Experts comment: "The pit aroma is elegant and comfortable, the entry is soft and sweet, the body is full, the aged flavor stands out, mellow and sweet, soft and harmonious, with a clean finish and long fragrance, a typical strong-aroma style."
A grand master of the liquor world said: "It is like a beauty: add a fraction and it is too long, subtract a fraction and it is too short, just right, beyond reproach. It is a 'living artifact' witness to the world's distillation craft."
"Since ancient times, beautiful scenery has produced fine liquor, drawing three lifetimes of sighs from men of letters." Liquor is a product of humanity's march toward civilization; baijiu is the crystallization of Chinese culture. For thousands of years, liquor has enriched culture, and culture has promoted the development of liquor. Love liquor, love liquor culture, and let us together carry forward and broaden our motherland's precious and excellent traditional liquor culture! This article is reprinted from the WeChat public account: Goujiu Wang (www-gjw-com).