Changshengyuan Yellow Rice Wine

Changshengyuan Yellow Rice Wine

　　Changshengyuan Yellow Rice Wine is a specialty of Pingyao County, Jinzhong City, Shanxi Province. Known as “Changshengyuan” yellow rice wine, it is made from yellow glutinous rice produced in Pingyao, hence it is also called “glutinous rice wine.” It boasts a rich and mellow aroma, has a mild taste suitable for all ages, and serves not only as an ideal seasoning in cooking but also offers health benefits such as promoting blood circulation, removing blood stasis, and nourishing blood.

　　When Pingyao locals think of yellow rice wine, the name “Changshengyuan” immediately comes to mind. The Changshengyuan Yellow Rice Wine shop is located on the south side of the Market Tower in the heart of Pingyao Ancient City. Originally named “Ju Sheng Yuan,” during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, Empress Dowager Cixi and Emperor Guangxu passed through Pingyao on their westward journey. After tasting the yellow rice wine from “Ju Sheng Yuan,” Empress Dowager Cixi highly praised it and bestowed upon it the new name “Changshengyuan.”

　　In fact, Pingyao’s yellow rice wine had already established its brand as early as the Chongzhen period of the Ming Dynasty. At that time, there was a scholar-official named Zhao Ju Xian in Pingyao City who came from a wealthy family, owned extensive fertile land, and enjoyed gathering literati and artists at home—truly a case of “talking and laughing with great scholars, and associating with no commoners.” That year, due to untimely autumn planting, Scholar Zhao planted all his autumn fields with millet, which turned out to be a bumper harvest, filling the granaries to the brim. However, a problem soon arose: there was too much millet and no way to process or sell it. Even after slashing prices, sales remained sluggish. In distress, Scholar Zhao had no choice but to grind all the millet into glutinous rice, then process it into yellow rice wine. After painstakingly searching for the right brewing formula, he finally succeeded in making the wine. He stored the brewed wine in jars and sealed them in cellars. Two years later, when the jars were opened, an extraordinary fragrance filled the air. Aside from entertaining friends and family consumption, there was still surplus. Upon the suggestion of friends, Zhao Ju Xian decided to open a shop to sell the wine. Choosing a name for the shop posed quite a challenge, but he eventually settled on “Ju Sheng Yuan,” symbolizing customer influx, thriving business, continuous improvement, and lasting legacy. Zhao Ju Xian’s yellow rice wine was authentic, long-lasting, and deliciously fragrant, sweet, and smooth—greatly loved by customers, and his business flourished. Though the Zhao family went through several shop managers and head brewers over the years, they always upheld Zhao Ju Yuan’s principle of “strictly pursuing quality, modestly pursuing profit,” keeping the brand alive for many years. Over time, the saying “If you want to get rich, open a long-standing shop” evolved into “If you want to get rich, open a wine shop.”

　　After 1950, Changshengyuan Yellow Rice Wine was subject to centralized purchasing and marketing, lost its market presence, and gradually faded away. It wasn’t until the winds of reform swept across China that Changshengyuan Yellow Rice Wine returned to people’s lives.

　　Currently, this time-honored brand “Changshengyuan” is managed by Mr. Guo Huai Ren, the sixth-generation successor.