Quyang Jujube Wine

Quyang Jujube Wine

　　Jujube Wine

　　The toughest product in Quyang has to be jujube wine. Don’t doubt it — there’s even a poem to prove it: One or two cups won’t go to your head, three or four have you leaning on the wall, five or six and the wall moves but you don’t. In Quyang, jujube wine has nurtured generations of heroic, tough men, as can be seen in the local expressions: What’s up? Oh, nothing much at all!

　　Quyang Jujube Wine Brewing Process:

　　Soaking the jujubes: The jujubes are poured into a large vat and soaked in water until softened. The grain husks or corn stalks are crushed, and the jujubes are put into a crusher to turn them into a pulp, which is then stirred together with the husks or stalks in a mixer.

　　Fermentation: Mix according to a ratio of 3,000 jin of jujubes to six large baskets of stalks or husks, stirring everything together evenly (for the first batch, an appropriate amount of distiller's yeast should be added). The jujube-husk mixture is placed into a square pit, covered with plastic sheeting, and then layered with husks (to retain heat). A long corn stalk is inserted from the top to the bottom of the pit (acting like a thermometer).

　　Distillation: After fermenting for ten to fifteen days, it’s time to start distilling the liquor. The large pot used for distillation is called a “wine well,” and because it needs to hold a large amount of mash, its sides are made very high. Water is added to the bottom of the pot, with a rack placed horizontally on top. The mash is placed on the rack, and over the mash goes an iron plate with a groove for directing the flow and a central depression to collect the liquor. Above that is a shallow-bottomed iron pot used to cool the alcohol vapor. This shallow pot is placed on top, filled with cold water, and then the distillation process can officially begin.

　　Points to Note:

　　First is the ratio of jujubes to husks.

　　Second is the degree of fermentation — under-fermented or over-fermented both won’t do. Typically, experienced brewers gauge the temperature by inserting a stalk into the fermentation pit, relying entirely on feel and experience. If using a thermometer, the fermentation temperature should rise to around 40 degrees and then fall to about 18 degrees.

　　Third is the temperature during distillation, mainly a matter of controlling the heat.