Fujian Hakka people are famous for their hospitality and hospitality. Guests must be treated like home brewers since ancient times. Drinking wine will lead to full enjoyment and dispersal with joy.
When did Fujian Hakka wine girl originate? According to legend, more than a thousand years ago, the Han people in the Central Plains migrated south in large numbers to avoid famine and war. A group of women migrated across thousands of mountains and rivers and entered Fujian. They were so tired that they could no longer walk and fell asleep in the deep mountains and wild ridges one by one. I don’t know how long it took, but a gust of breeze mixed with a special fragrance refreshed my heart. When an elderly woman slowly woke up, she saw an elder with silver hair and a red face, using a bamboo ladle to scoop out the food from the container. A clear and transparent liquid came out, and he handed it to the old woman and said, "Drink it!" The old woman took a sip. As soon as she smelled the mellow and rich smell, she felt relaxed and happy, and then all her fatigue disappeared. The old woman followed the elder's instructions and gave each sister a sip. In a blink of an eye, they all woke up and were full of energy. Looking at the surprised eyes of the women, the elder laughed and said, "This is wine made from sugar rice." Then he introduced the brewing method to everyone, and then walked away. This group of women found their families who came first, settled and developed in Shibi, lived and multiplied. Later, Shibi became the ancestral home of the Hakka people, and the Hakka wine girl was passed down from generation to generation. Whether the legend is true or not has not been verified, but it is certain that Fujian Hakka Jiu Niang has an ancient origin and unique production.
The ancestors of the Hakka people originally lived in the Central Plains. The Han people in the north were always fond of white wine. They moved south to Fujian. Why is rice wine so popular? The reasons for this are: first, the north is rich in sorghum and wheat, which are the main raw materials for brewing liquor; while western Fujian is a rice-producing area and is rich in glutinous rice, which is the raw material for making rice wine and is easy to obtain. Furthermore, western Fujian is located in a mountainous area with high mountains and deep forests. The underground spring water is clean and sweet, and the water quality is very good, which is suitable for brewing rice wine. Rice wine is easy to brew, and every household can brew it by themselves. Just wash the glutinous rice and soak it thoroughly. Place in a rice cooker and steam thoroughly. Brewing experts say: "Brewing requires no effort, as long as the glutinous rice is steamed." This means that steaming the glutinous rice thoroughly is an important part of brewing and cannot be ignored. After the glutinous rice is steamed, spread it in a dustpan and let it cool, or place the rice steamer directly on a wooden stand and pour cold well water over the glutinous rice to cool it down. This is called "draining wine", and put the wine cake (jiuqu) into it. Grind it into powder and mix thoroughly with cold boiled water. This is called "Pushui". Put the cooled (or cooled) glutinous rice into a wine vat, sprinkle with "Pushui", and stir it evenly with your hands. This is called "Taiwan wine" (local pronunciation). Then flatten the mixed glutinous rice in the vat, dig a "wine well" in the center, cover it and keep it warm for three days, and the well will be filled with wine ladies. Generally, one bucket of glutinous rice (about 15 to 17 kilograms) is used in each vat, which can make the brewing lady about seven pots (about 16 to 18 kilograms). Ninghua wine girls have a wide range of uses. In addition to daily drinking and entertaining guests, wine is used for cooking, seasoning, and medicine. It can also be used as gifts for relatives and friends. The number of jars of wine must be determined in the wedding gift. When a daughter-in-law gives birth to a child, she must use wine. Prepare a rooster and six pots of wine to announce the good news to the grandparents' house, which is called sending "ginger wine". Grandpa and grandma will distribute the wine to relatives, friends and neighbors, and each person will drink a small cup, which is called "drinking the wedding wine". In addition, there is also a folk saying that the northern climate is cold and the human body is more suitable for drinking white wine; while Ninghua is located in the tropics and the human body is mostly hot, so it is more suitable to drink rice wine. Due to the above-mentioned factors, Hakka wine girls in Ninghua are found in every household, all year round.
Fujian Hakka Jiu Niang is delicious, fragrant and has a low alcohol content. Generally, the alcohol content of Jiu Niang is about 25 degrees, and the alcohol content of water wine is about 18 degrees. It is sweet and delicious, not easy to get drunk, and is widely consumed. Men, women, old and young all drink it. Whenever there are guests and friends, or wedding celebrations, it is better to use tin pots to serve wine. Hakka people are outgoing people. At this time, they drink from big bowls and eat large pieces of meat. They are so happy that it is hard to express in words.
The quality of rice wine depends first on the water and secondly on the brewing technology, but the most important thing is the wine cake (jiu koji). It is said that the wine cake used by Hakka people in Fujian originated from the She people. The She family in Fujian has always been good at making wine, and every household has old wine. The main ingredients of the wine cake are herbs, such as wine cake grass, golden cherry seeds, etc., which are dried and ground into powder. Based on grain flour, they are fermented and made into thumb-sized balls. Six or seven pills are used for each vat of wine. That’s it. The Hakka people learned this technology and some people made wine and cakes for sale. After long-term practice and continuous improvement, some have become family secret recipes and are not widely spread. For example, Huaitu wine cakes are the ingredients for brewing the specialty rice wine, which is extremely popular. However, the secret of making this wine has become a patent of the Huaitu people. It can be seen from this that the wine culture of the She people has a significant influence on the wine culture of the Hakkas.
Fujian Hakka wine culture is constantly summarized, improved, developed and improved in practice, becoming rich and colorful.
In terms of the name of the wine, each one has its own name due to its different alcohol content: the wine that has just been brewed without adding water is called the fermented (strong) wine; the fermented wine that has been stored for a long time is called the wine lady; the wine lady is mixed with 30% to 50% cold boiled water, soak for three to five days, squeeze out the distiller's grains, boil and clarify, and it is water wine. The names of the wines vary depending on the brewing season and storage time. Home-made wine is mostly made in autumn and winter, especially around the "winter solstice". The wine is called "winter wine" and is stored for one year. The wine that is opened for drinking in the following winter is called "winter wine"; the wine that has been stored for many years is called "winter wine". It is called "aged old wine"; those with tonic drugs added during brewing are called "toning wine". Folks in the spring area also brew "chicken tonic wine". The preparation method is to select a strong chicken (capon), slaughter it, bleed it, pluck its feathers, disembowel it and remove its internal organs, wash it and drain off the water, and then use more than a dozen nourishing traditional Chinese medicines such as angelica root, dangshen, astragalus, eucommia, and oxtail. Hide the chicken in the belly, place the chicken at the bottom of a wine jar, press the glutinous rice mixed with the wine cake on top, seal the mouth of the jar, and store it for one year. When the jar is opened, the chicken and distiller's grains have liquefied. Remove the chicken bones and medicinal residue, and serve Boil it in a tin wine pot and drink a small bowl every day. Your energy will double and you will be particularly energetic at work.
Drinking is very common among Hakka people in Fujian. Men, women, old and young all drink it, sometimes replacing tea with wine. Therefore, in addition to farmers brewing and drinking for themselves, there are also businesses that specialize in brewing and selling wine. There are hotels everywhere in the countryside. "Ninghua County Chronicles" published by the Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty records: "At the turn of Qizhen" (1627-1628), in Tingzhou County, "Meng Xia's dragon boat passed by the water, and small boats were often used instead of gardens. Fish and fish must be washed by the waterside." ". This shows the popularity of hotels in Tingzhou County at that time.
Because drinking plays an important role in the minds of the Hakka people, wine has become a synonym for various banquets. For example, during the New Year, every family invites "New Year's wine". When a child is born, "three dynasties" are invited. "Wine", "Full Moon Wine" is a full moon; "Graduation Wine" for children's graduation; "Engagement Wine" for engagements; "Wedding Wine" for marriages; "Housewarming Wine" when building a new house and moving; and "Congratulations" for the birthday of the elderly. longevity wine". This shows that "making wine" does not just refer to brewing and making wine, but a phenomenon of wine culture.
Guess guessing is also popular among Fujian Hakka people when drinking. The usual guess is "Ding Zai Quan", which means "a good promotion, two people are good friends, three stars are shining brightly, four seasons are rich, five sons are successful, six or six are smooth, seven are clever, eight are immortals, nine or nine are long, a pair of treasures, the whole house is full of glory." "There is also the shouting and singing of "Ding Dong Fist". The loser drinks wine. When the banquet ends, they all raise their glasses together and shout "The whole house is red", and each drinks up the wine in his bowl, which fully reflects the Hakka people's hospitality to guests.