Kweichow Moutai is exclusively produced in Renhuai Town, Zunyi County, Guizhou Province, China. One of the three major distilled spirits, which are equally famous with Scotch whisky and French cognac, is the originator of Daqu Maotai-flavor liquor.
Maotai has a long and mysterious history. Maotai is also the national wine of China. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, Moutai has been presented as a national gift to foreign leaders in numerous major events. Since ancient times, countless literati yearned for and praised Maotai. It is no exaggeration to say that every tiny "side" of Moutai contains rich human and historical stories, which have profound cultural accumulation and humanistic value. Just like a fragrant business card issued by China to the world, the figurative Moutai and abstract "humanity" let the world know themselves with intoxicating fragrance, and at the same time, they also show the charm and charm of Chinese wine culture to the world to let the world know the culture of China and China.
The quality of the wine produced by Maotai is particularly good, which has long been conclusive since ancient times.
Liu Bang, Emperor Gaozu, was full of praise after drinking citric acid sauce. Liu Che, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, praised it as "sweet". Huang Tingjian, a great poet in the Northern Song Dynasty, once wrote a famous sentence, "Liu Chunfeng drinks a glass of wine, and it rains Yi Deng for ten years", but when he drinks it, he laments that it is "extremely drinkable". Shi Dakai, a famous Taiping Heavenly Kingdom star, wrote an eternal famous sentence, "A million mu of pearls are collected in an urn, and the king comes here to bow his head, and Optimus Prime raises the red, while the Yangtze River pours water." Wang Hao defeated the Dadu River, but the metaphor of "Optimus Prime" in his poems makes people vaguely realize that Maotai on Chishui River will become China's "national wine" in a hundred years.
trait
Maotai liquor is a typical maotai-flavor Daqu liquor with the most perfect style, so maotai-flavor liquor is also called maotai-flavor liquor. Its wine is bright, transparent, yellowish, with outstanding Maotai flavor, intoxicating, full of fragrance without opening a cup, leaving a bigger fragrance and lasting after drinking an empty cup. Elegant and delicate taste, mellow and mellow, long aftertaste, endless aftertaste. Maotai liquor is pure, transparent and mellow, and consists of three special flavors: sauce flavor, cellar bottom flavor and mellow sweetness. At present, there are more than 300 known aroma components. Alcohol is 53 degrees.
Place of production
Moutai is produced in Maotai Town, Chishui River, renhuai city, Guizhou Province, surrounded by mountains, and the situation is dangerous. It is the throat of land and water transportation in Sichuan and Guizhou. The water quality of Chishui River is pure and sweet, and it contains a small amount of minerals, which is just for wine making.
Maotai liquor is named after it is produced in Maotai Town on the Chishui River in northern Guizhou. Because Maotai Town is located in the river valley, the wind speed is low, which is very conducive to the habitat and reproduction of microorganisms brewing Moutai. In the sixties and seventies of last century, experts from all over the country used the technology and raw materials of Moutai, pit mud, and even workers and technicians produced in different places, and the products produced could not achieve the same effect. It also fully proves that Moutai is closely related to the place of origin, and Moutai cannot be cloned. Therefore, Moutai became the first product in China to be included in geographical protection of origin in 200 1 year.
diversification
The trademark of Moutai was originally printed in woodcut, but the word "Kweichow Moutai" was written in a petal-shaped pattern in regular script. Later it was changed to continuous history paper lead printing. Trademark naming: Cheng Yi pub is "Shuangde brand", Ronghe pub is "Maisui brand" and Hengshi pub is "Shan Ying brand". 1952 was changed to "workers and peasants". 1954 is divided into two trademarks: the domestic brand is "Golden Wheel Brand" (also known as "Gongnong Brand") and the export brand is "Feixian Brand". During the Cultural Revolution, it was once changed to "Sunflower Card", and then it was restored to "Golden Wheel Card" and "Feixian Card", which have been in use ever since.
brief history
The earliest record of Chishui River's brewing history is Sima Qian's Historical Records. Historical Records Biography of Southwest Yi records that in 130 BC, Liu Che, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, drank the famous wine "Hulu Sauce" from Yelang (now northern Guizhou) and could not help but praise it as "sweet". Later, there was the history that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent Tang Meng, a general of the Han Dynasty, to Guizhou to open up a foreign road and specially bypass Renhuai, where Maotai was located. There is a saying, "What is the gouache of the China government? Earn Tang laughed that Maotai was called Yibu in ancient times, and Goujiang was proved to be a wine brewed by Renhuai Chishui River with fruit and grain.
In the history of brewing in China, liquor made entirely from grain through koji-making began in the Tang and Song Dynasties. Daqu liquor produced in Maotai area along Chishui River has become a tribute of the imperial court. During the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, Yangliuwan (now the first workshop area of Maotai Distillery) in Maotai Town had built a certain scale of brewing workshops. It is worth noting that at that time, the brewing technology of Maotai had created a unique "sand-returning" process.
By the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, there were workshops in every village of the wine-making industry in Renhuai area. During this period, the unique Maotai-flavor liquor in Maotai area has been formed. 1704 (forty-two years of Kangxi), the brand of Moutai began to appear. A batch of Maotai liquor marked by "returning sand to Maotai", "Maochun" and "burning Maotai in spring" has become the best liquor in Guizhou.
During the Qianlong period, Zhang Guangsi, the governor of Guizhou, wrote to the court to build and dredge the Chishui River, which made Sichuan salt flow into Guizhou and promoted the prosperity of Maotai liquor-making industry. By the time of Jiaqing and Daoguang, there were more than 20 burning workshops in Maotai Town, the most famous of which were Shousheng Wine Shop and Dahe Burning Workshop. By 1840, the output of liquor in Maotai area reached 170 tons, which was the first production scale in the history of China liquor making. "Households only store and sell wine, and ships carry more salt" became a historical portrayal of the busy scene of Maotai in that period.
Before 1949, the output of Moutai declined, and there were only three wineries, namely "Cheng Yi Winery" funded by Hua surname, which was called "Hua Mao"; The Ronghe Wine Room sponsored by Wang Xing is called Elvis Presley. Hengxing Brewery funded by Lai Xing is called "Lai Mao". Hua Mao is the predecessor of Maotai. 1704, Zhuosheng Shaofang officially named its wine Maotai.
1949 As soon as Guizhou was liberated at the end of 1949, the Central Committee called and asked the Guizhou Provincial Party Committee and Renhuai County Committee to correctly implement the party's industrial and commercial policies, protect the production equipment of Maotai Distillery and continue production. According to the instructions of the central government, Guizhou Province has given strong economic support to Cheng Yi, Ronghe and Hengxing to help them develop. He also gave political treatment to his superiors and arranged positions in the people's government. 195 1 year, Guizhou Province acquired the largest Cheng Yi Shaofang and merged the other two to establish the state-owned Maotai Distillery. The government immediately transferred capable cadres and invested a lot of money to expand the scale of production.
1949 10, on the eve of founding ceremony, Moutai entered Huairentang in Zhongnanhai, and the founding fathers of the Republic of China congratulated each other. According to China News Agency, founding ceremony's first founding banquet was held in Beijing Hotel that night. From the chef's choice to the menu wine, Zhou Enlai personally examined and approved it, with Maotai as the main wine. The country is rich and strong, and the country is rich and strong. Maotai, which healed the wounds of the Red Army, finally became the "founding wedding banquet" of the country.
By the end of 1990s, Moutai had won the international gold medal 14 times in a row.
Brewing
The special climate, water quality and unique brewing technology in Maotai area have long been known by the ancients and added to the summary. The "Zunyi Prefecture Records" in the light years of the Qing Dynasty reads: "Moutai is produced in Maotai Village in the west of Renhuai City, ranking first in Guizhou Province. Its material is pure sorghum, followed by miscellaneous grains. Method: Put the cooked raw materials and distiller's yeast into the wine cellar and bake it in the wine cellar next month. Its qu is made of wheat and is called Baishui Qu, while Guizhou is called Daqu Liquor and Maotai. Renhuai is poor and poor, there are no fewer than 20 houses burned by Maotai, and the cost of mountain products is no less than 20,000 stones. " This record accurately describes the brand, liquor quality, production technology and production scale of Moutai in that year.
Maotai takes high-quality sorghum as raw material, and wheat is high-temperature koji, but the amount of koji used is more than raw material. Unique techniques, such as using more koji, long fermentation period, multiple fermentations and taking wine for many times, are the important reasons for the unique style and excellent quality of Moutai. Maotai liquor is made by adding raw sand twice, fermenting eight times and distilling nine times. The production cycle is as long as eight or nine months, and after more than three years of aging, blending and storage for another year, the quality of liquor is more harmonious, mellow and soft, and it can be bottled before leaving the factory. The whole production process lasted nearly five years.
judge
The sensory identification method of Moutai is as follows:
(1) manufacturer's identification
Maotai Distillery is not associated with any other manufacturer, nor does it share the trademark licensing right with any manufacturer, nor does it set up a factory, a second factory or a branch factory. Any "Maotai" marked as joint venture factory, factory, branch factory and branch factory is definitely fake.
(2) Identification of registered trademarks
The whole bottle of Moutai is labeled with the registered trademark of Kweichow Moutai, which is printed with imported 100g steel paper. The trademark paper specification of a 500ml volumetric bottle is 90mm× 125mm. The logo of domestic wine merchants is divided into three parts: there is a 60 mm wide white diagonal belt in the middle from the upper right to the lower left, and there are two thin black lines and four thick black lines on the upper and lower sides respectively, with the red words "Kweichow Moutai" in the middle. There is a gold bar with a width of 13 mm at the junction of the diagonal bar and the upper left corner, and there are four black characters "Famous at home and abroad" on it. There is a red color block in the upper left corner, and there is a white circle with a diameter of 35 mm in the middle. There are annular ears of wheat, golden gears and red five-pointed stars from top to bottom in the circle. There is a thin gold thread at the junction of the diagonal belt and the lower right corner. On the red color block in the lower right corner, there are eight white characters "Produced by China Maotai Distillery", and below the white characters, there are black characters "53% vol, 500mL" to indicate the alcohol content and capacity. The back of the bottle is 65 mm× 85 mm, with a red edge and a white edge with a width of 10 mm around it. The date of manufacture is blue Arabic numerals. The trademark is beautifully printed, with accurate colors and even trimming.
The trademark and back sticker of fake Maotai are printed on ordinary paper. The trademark specification is 100 mm× 140 mm, and the back sticker specification is133 mm× 85 mm. The colors of various patterns are confused, the levels are unclear, the colors are light, the specifications are inconsistent, and the fonts used are obviously different from the real trademarks. The date of manufacture is written in red and other colors.
(3) Identification of packaging materials
The bottle body of Moutai is a milky glass bottle, and the seal is a big red thread twisted anti-theft aluminum cover with five white words "Kweichow Moutai" on it, and the bottle mouth has no internal plug. The whole bottle of wine is wrapped in high-quality square leather paper, and the color box is packed: the outer packaging color box is made of imported white paper and corrugated. The font and color on the box are consistent with the trademark and the back sticker.
Fake "Maotai" is sealed with different shades of red rubber caps, some are transparent without words, and some are fake "Maotai". The bottle cap is white and red. The cover also has different wall patterns, including yellow broken aluminum cover and plastic broken yellow aluminum cover. There are several kinds of inner plugs, such as spiral type, belt waist line and flat top. The outer packing box is made of unqualified and inferior leather paper or other materials.
(4) Identification of sensory characteristics
Maotai liquor is made of wheat, fermented for eight times and stored for two or three years before leaving the factory. Its unique sensory indicators are: white wine is colorless and transparent, mellow and sweet when drinking, without suspended matter and precipitation, outstanding aroma, elegant and delicate, full-bodied, long aftertaste and lasting fragrance in empty cups. Fake "Maotai" is mostly made of sorghum wine, white dry wine and mixed wine. And it is difficult to have the characteristics of color, fragrance and taste of Maotai.
efficacy
The alcohol content is low but not weak, pure and light yellow, crystal clear, soft and mellow, not stinging the throat and not starting. It is refreshing and refreshing after drinking, and has the effects of relaxing muscles and tendons, promoting blood circulation, protecting health and prolonging life. Premier Zhou Enlai commented that Maotai liquor "tastes better than vodka and has the characteristics of no sore throat, no headache, no fatigue and stable spirit". Former US President Nixon once praised "Moutai can cure all diseases".
honour
19 15 Panama International Fair Gold Award
1985 golden laurel leaf award of international food tourism Committee in Paris, France
1986 gold medal of the 12th international food fair in Paris, France.
1986 Asian star packaging award in the 13th Asian packaging appraisal conference.
1987 first prize of export advertising in the third advertising conference
1989 gold medal of the first Beijing international Expo
199 1 Gold Award of the Second Beijing International Expo
1992 92 Japan International Food Expo Gold Award
1992 Gold Award of American International Famous Wine Expo
1992 the highest gold medal of hong kong international food Expo
1993 Moutai wines of 53 degrees, 43 degrees and 38 degrees were awarded special honors at the Bordeaux International Wine Exhibition in France.
1994 Moutai won the first prize of the special gold medal in the international wine tasting to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Panama World Expo.
story
1. Panama World Expo won the championship.
19 15, in the name of "maotai company", Beiyang government sent maotai packaged in pottery altar to Panama World Expo, which was ignored by outsiders. A China official threw a crock on the ground in a hurry. Suddenly, the smell of wine was so strong that four seats were dumbfounded, and Maotai finally won the championship.
2. The Red Army and Maotai Liquor
On March 1935, the Red Army captured Maotai. In order to protect the well-known Moutai workshops from losses, the Political Department of the Military Commission posted notices at the gates of Cheng Yi, Ronghe and Hengxing wineries, which produce the most Moutai in Maotai Town, respectively: "Encouraging the development of national industry and commerce belongs to the protection scope of our army. Maotai old wine brewed by private enterprises is of excellent quality, winning the gold medal in Panama International Competition in one fell swoop, winning glory for the Chinese people. Our army can only buy and sell in wineries, and the equipment such as wine stoves, wine cellars, jars, wine bottles, etc. should be well protected and not damaged. I hope all our soldiers will seriously abide by it. " From this notice, we can see that the Red Army attaches great importance to national industries and well-known products.
In order to welcome the Red Army, the local people held Moutai. Maotai liquor was good, as many senior Red Army leaders knew at that time. Wang Yuenan, the company commander of the Red Army Corps of Engineers, recalled that he and Mao Zedong guard Chen Fengchang came back from the restaurant to buy wine and happened to meet Comrade Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong asked, what did you mention? Chen Fengchang replied that the wine he bought wiped his tired legs. Mao Zedong said with a smile: "Maotai is a place of famous wine. It's a pity to wipe your feet with this wine!" Zhou Enlai also introduced to many comrades, "This is Maotai, which won the gold medal at the Panama World Expo"!
However, for the Red Army team at that time, the role of Moutai in restoring fatigue and treating diseases and trauma was unforgettable. Li Zhen, the first female general of our army to participate in the Long March, later recalled: "1In March of 935, we made a long March to Maotai Town, Renhuai County, Guizhou Province. Because of the long-distance fatigue, and temporarily get rid of Chiang Kai-shek's army, everyone wants to relax. At that time, I heard that the local wine was good and delicious, and everyone was very happy. Some people rub their hands and feet and wipe their faces with wine. After rubbing, it really has the effect of relaxing muscles and promoting blood circulation, and the whole body feels comfortable. After drinking wine, the fatigue of the Long March completely disappeared, and it is better for comrades with cold and diarrhea to drink some wine. "
The famous writer Cheng wrote in his Memoirs of the Long March: "Because of the military emergency, I dare not drink too much. Mainly used to wipe feet and restore walking fatigue. Moutai rubbing feet does have a miraculous effect, and everyone praises it. "
At the end of the Anti-Japanese War, he said to the writer Yao in Chongqing: "1935, we went to Maotai on the Long March, and the local people welcomed us with Moutai. Soldiers use Moutai to scrub the wounds on their feet and legs, which can relieve pain and diminish inflammation. Drinking it can cure diarrhea and temporarily solve a major difficulty in our lack of medicine at that time. The victory of the Red Army's Long March is also a great contribution of Moutai. "
Although Moutai has made a special contribution to the revolution in China, it was rated as "national wine" in China at a national wine tasting two years later.
1952 September, the first national wine tasting in China was held in Beijing. Premier Zhou Enlai not only approved the holding of cocktail parties, but also repeatedly urged careful organization and strict control to evaluate good wines. The wine tasting was hosted by China Monopoly Corporation, and tens of thousands of wine samples were sent from all over the country. Before the official wine tasting, 65,438+003 wine samples have been selected for wine tasting. After careful selection by brewing experts, wine evaluation experts and scholars from all over the country, China's eight famous wines were finally selected, and Moutai topped the list, naturally becoming the national wine of China. In a sense, this selection is not only the recognition of history, but also the recognition of the people. Moutai is a well-deserved national wine!
Since then, Moutai, as a national wine, has not only become the highest-standard and noble wine for state banquets and diplomatic etiquette, but also become a precious and superior product among the people in China. At the same time, the party and the state also attach great importance to the production and quality assurance of Moutai. Even during the "Cultural Revolution", Premier Zhou Enlai, who was seriously ill, still emphasized "Don't pollute the Maotai River".
1999 10, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of People's Republic of China (PRC)'s birth, the China History Museum collected a bottle of 50-year-old Maotai, and issued a collection certificate to Maotai Distillery: "This is a tribute to Maotai for its centuries-old love and excellent quality with the Republic of China, and it will be aged for 50 years on the 50th birthday of the Republic of China." At present, our library accepts the donation of Guizhou Moutai for 50 years and gives it a permanent collection. "
This collection certificate clearly affirmed the red love, special contribution and excellent quality of Moutai and China Revolution, as well as the lofty status of national wine.
Maotai
Has a famous world history.
As one of the three largest distilled spirits in the world, Kweichow Moutai, which enjoys a worldwide reputation, started from 19 15. It can almost be said that before this, although ancient China has a long brewing history, rich wine cultural origins and many fine wines with different styles, no fine wine has been able to rush out of China and get recognition from the international community.
But Maotai went out, representing the highest level of traditional liquor in China. The first time I crossed the ocean, it was a blockbuster and won a worldwide reputation as soon as I debuted.
At this international exposition, after repeated comparison and evaluation by judges from various countries, it was agreed that Moutai is a world famous wine with excellent color, aroma and taste, so it was rated as the world's three largest distilled spirits together with French cognac and English scotch whisky, and was awarded gold medals and bonuses. Maotai has since stepped onto the world stage and occupied the throne of the world's three famous wines.
It is inevitable that Moutai will win the international gold medal and become a world famous wine. This "inevitability" is the unique flavor and excellent quality handed down from ancient times.
After winning the prize, Maotai became famous and in short supply. It became the number one famous wine in various important social occasions in China at that time, and the only famous wine in China in the international community. In this sense, Moutai, which has not been clearly defined as "national wine", has long had the meaning of "national wine" and has long been endowed with great trust and supreme honor by Chinese people.
One of Mao Zedong's first gifts to Stalin in the Soviet Union was Moutai. At the first victory of the new China diplomatic front-the Geneva Conference, Premier Zhou said that Maotai liquor contributed a lot. After Nixon's first visit to China broke the ice of Sino-US relations, he and Zhou Enlai enjoyed Moutai together. After the normalization of diplomatic relations between China and Japan, the precious gift that Prime Minister Tanaka brought to his daughter when he returned home was Zhou Enlai Moutai. After the Sino-British talks on Hong Kong, Deng Xiaoping and Margaret Thatcher raised their glasses and drank Maotai ... It can be said that it is almost customary to entertain state guests with Maotai; Maotai, as the national wine of China and the national gift wine for foreign exchange, represents the long history and profound culture of the Chinese nation.
On the other hand, we can see the influence of Maotai, the national wine, in countries all over the world. In the Qing Dynasty, most merchants who transported salt to Guizhou came from Shanxi and Shaanxi. Maotai on Chishui River is a salt transfer station. At that time, the poem "Shu Yan goes to Guizhou, Qin Shang gives Maotai" is a concrete portrayal of this situation. These "Qin merchants" are extremely rich and extravagant, and they feast all day. As far away as Guizhou, they often miss the Fenjiu in Shanxi. In order to meet this need, they specially hired workers from Shanxi to cooperate with local winemakers to study and make wine for them to enjoy. This move is said to have started in the 43rd year of Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty (1704). After repeated experiments and numerous improvements, a unique brewing process was finally explored and a unique Moutai liquor was produced. Because of the complexity of technology and the limitation of local climate and water quality, it can't be copied elsewhere, so it is particularly precious. Maotai was brewed privately by salt merchants. At that time, the poet's saying that "the family sells wine for storage, and the ship carries more salt" and "the wine is crowned in Guizhou, and salt is on the Red River" all refer to this statement. During the Daoguang period, this kind of homemade wine gradually appeared. "Qian Yu" said: "Maotai Village belongs to Renhuai County, and the natives on the riverside are good at brewing, so it is called Maotai Spring, which is very clear." After nearly a hundred years' development, Moutai has become a world-renowned China famous wine. Its characteristics are: colorless and transparent, special fragrance, mellow and rich, long and sweet.
market
After liberation, the state attached great importance to developing and supporting the production of this famous product. After more than 30 years of construction, the annual output of Moutai has reached 1700 tons since/kloc-0 was re-exported to the international market through Hong Kong and Macao in 953.
Maotai liquor has been exported to more than 50 countries and regions in the world, with an annual foreign exchange earning of more than $10 million. It has become the traditional liquor commodity with the largest export volume, the largest number of countries visited and the highest exchange rate per ton of liquor in China.