Yidu Red Wine

Yidu Red Wine

　　Yidu Red Wine boasts a long history and widespread fame, with over 1,000 years of heritage, and its brewing techniques are well known to all. People store the wine in earthenware jars, then tightly cover them with a “sandbag.” The longer it ages, the more mellow and fragrant the wine becomes.

　　The brewing process is intricate and delicate

　　To brew good red wine, you first need good red yeast. The main ingredients for making red wine are rice, red yeast, and cold boiled water. High-quality red wine is usually made from glutinous rice. People mix steamed glutinous rice, red yeast, and cold boiled water in specific proportions and seal them in large jars. After some time, the ingredients in the jar ferment and meld together, with the color gradually changing from light red to deep red, and finally to dark red. The fermentation period generally lasts 20 to 30 days, and experienced brewers can judge the fermentation stage just by looking and tasting. Then, a wine cup is pressed into the jar, and the clear, bright, mellow, and sweet red wine filters into it. The wine is then ladled out spoonful by spoonful and poured into jars.

　　The benefits of red wine are endless. Red wine is an excellent tonic. After a long day’s work, drinking a bit of warm wine in the evening can help relax the muscles and joints and strengthen the body. Red wine also has unique medicinal value—traditional Chinese medicine practitioners often use it in prescriptions, and local women drink it for several days after childbirth to “release qi,” followed by a month of drinking it to “build qi.” In addition, red wine is an essential condiment for stir-frying and making soups... 　

　　The folk wine industry is developing rapidly

　　　 Yidu Red Wine and red yeast have become specialties of Yidu. People from nearby counties and cities often come in person or ask relatives and friends to buy red yeast from Yidu, saying that the wine fermented from Yidu’s red yeast is uniquely delicious—mellow, clear, and full of flavor. The town sells over 100 tons of red yeast every year.

　　　 Yidu Red Wine is very popular. Currently, there are over 30 major wine producers in the town, mainly concentrated in villages such as Huangsha, Xianyou, Xianyang, and Nanyang. According to preliminary statistics, they sell over 200 tons of red wine annually through various channels, with several producers unable to meet the demand.