Golden Maple Wine Museum

Golden Maple Wine Museum

Shanghai JinFeng Winery Co., Ltd. is the largest yellow wine brewing enterprise in Shanghai. The Shanghai Shikumen Distillery is located in the "40,000-ton Brewing Base" of the Fengjing Industrial Park, with an investment of 280 million yuan, covering an area of 190,000 square meters and a building area of over 100,000 square meters. It was completed and put into operation in November 2004, and together with the Fengjing Distillery and the Dianshan Lake Distillery, it forms the three major production bases of JinFeng Wine. It has become the country's largest single modern yellow wine production base with first-class craftsmanship, technology, equipment, scale, management, and environment in the industry.

On September 15, 2006, the Golden Maple Wine Museum officially opened within the Shikumen Distillery. The museum is an industry-focused museum dedicated to promoting yellow wine culture. It is the first wine museum in China centered on the development techniques and contemporary trends of yellow wine brewing.

The museum is divided into six exhibition areas: The first exhibition area displays the Golden Maple Wine Museum logo, an ancient coin-shaped stone mill, and Dian Shi Zhai painting boards. On the right side of the museum entrance stands a stone mill inscribed with “Prosperity Beyond Measure,” which was unearthed during the renovation of the Fengjing Distillery in 2002. Its shape resembles an ancient coin. The “Prosperity Beyond Measure” stone mill symbolizes the thriving business and continuous wealth of JinFeng Wine. The second exhibition area features hand-drawn maps from the late Qing Dynasty, depictions of tea houses and taverns along Shanghai’s Nanjing Road in the late Qing era, small taverns from the Song Dynasty, the Song-era Han Bottle, and illustrations of brewing processes. A glimpse of Shanghai’s taverns during the Song Dynasty is recreated here. To the left of the tavern display is the “Han Bottle,” unearthed in 1956 at Beipeng in Fengjing, which was a vessel used by Song soldiers to hold wine. On the other side of the exhibition area, the ancient wine-brewing process is illustrated through the famous painter Han Heping’s artwork, "Wine Brewing in the Song Dynasty." The third exhibition area is an Old Shanghai-style street, featuring gray-brick walls, black stone-framed doors, lattice windows, and dim yellow street lamps. Everything here seems to transport you back to the old Shanghai of the 1920s and 1930s. The surrounding light mist adds a nostalgic touch. The fourth exhibition area showcases a modern yellow wine bottling assembly line. Through the viewing corridor, visitors can clearly observe the operations of two modern bottling lines with capacities of 20,000 bottles per hour and 10,000 bottles per hour respectively. On the other side of the corridor, images depicting brewing scenes and techniques from different eras chronicle the development of yellow wine brewing technology. The fifth exhibition area is the tasting zone, traditional craft workshop, and yellow wine product display area. Traditional yellow wine brewing takes place from the Start of Winter to the Start of Spring the following year, commonly known among the people as “Winter Brewing.” The trade jargon goes: “Xiaoxue steep rice” (making the yeast starter during the Xiaoxue season), “Daxue spread rice” (adding ingredients to brew during the Daxue season), and “Lichun press wine.” This exhibit hall displays tools used in yellow wine brewing, such as windmills, wooden rakes, steaming vats, koji frames, seven-stone jars, and wooden presses. Although these tools may appear rudimentary, they are made from natural materials without any chemical odors or metal contamination, ensuring the high quality and rich flavor of traditionally brewed wine. In the tasting area, visitors can take a break and sample Shikumen yellow wine produced by the Fengjing Distillery for free. The sweet, mellow, and authentic taste will leave a lasting impression. The yellow wine product showroom displays a variety of yellow wines from major manufacturers across China. By observing microorganisms used in brewing under a microscope, visitors can learn about brewing knowledge and the long history of yellow wine in a relaxed and enjoyable environment. The sixth exhibition area offers a panoramic view of historical Chinese wine vessels. Displayed here are wine vessels of various shapes from the Xia and Shang dynasties. Though silent, these artifacts serve as valuable historical records that vividly narrate the long-standing yellow wine culture of the Chinese nation.