Dongjiu

Dongjiu

　　　　According to historical records, it has only about 200 years of history. The production of Dongjiu as we know it today began in the 1930s at the Cheng family distillery. At that time, there were several breweries operating in the area around Donggong Temple in the northern suburbs of Zunyi. Among them, the Cheng family’s distillery stood out due to its superior quality qu, which produced especially fragrant liquor. Later, he took in a seriously ill and immobile brewer who had come wandering from Maotai. By learning from the strengths of Maotai liquor and refining his techniques, the resulting brew gradually gained widespread fame—this is Dongjiu. Its name has been used continuously to this day.

　　　　Dongjiu is primarily made from high-quality glutinous sorghum, using over 140 kinds of Chinese medicinal herbs along with wheat for making the qu. The brewing process involves producing the fermented mash using small qu and small pits, and the aromatic mash using large qu and large pits. These two mashes are then distilled together in one steaming process to produce the liquor. Afterward, it undergoes careful selection by quality grading, classified aging, scientific blending, and meticulous packaging. Because Dongjiu is brewed using two different types of qu and follows a unique production process unlike other famous liquors, it possesses both the rich aroma of daqu (large qu) liquor and the soft, mellow, well-rounded, and slightly sweet characteristics of xiaoqu (small qu) liquor, along with a faint fragrance of medicinal herbs that creates a pleasant sensation. Therefore, the flavor profile of Dongjiu lies somewhere between strong-aroma and light-aroma styles—it embodies elements of both, creating a truly distinctive and original style. It has been classified as an "other aroma type" Baijiu (Chinese liquor). Its defining features include crystal-clear liquor, an elegant and comforting aroma, a rich and mellow taste upon drinking, and a long-lasting sweet aftertaste, earning it the reputation as one of China's renowned liquors.

　　　Dongjiu is produced at the Dongjiu Distillery in Zunyi City, Guizhou Province. Between 1929 and 1930, the Cheng family brewery produced Donggong Temple Cellar Liquor, and in 1942 it was officially named “Dongjiu.” In 1957, the Zunyi Dongjiu Distillery was established. In 1963, it was first rated as a National Famous Liquor, and continued to receive this honor after 1979. In 1963, it was also named a Guizhou Provincial Famous Liquor, won the Guizhou Famous Liquor Golden Cup Award in 1986, the Light Industry Ministry Liquor Quality Competition Golden Cup Award in 1984, and the Light Industry Ministry Excellent Export Product Gold Award in 1988. It claimed the title of National Famous Liquor and the Gold Medal at the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th National Liquor Appraisal Conferences in 1963, 1979, 1984, and 1988 respectively; in 1991, it received the Gold Medal at the 3rd International Wine and Beverage Expo in Tokyo, Japan; and in 1992, it was awarded the Washington Golden Cup at the International Liquor Evaluation and Exchange Conference in Los Angeles, USA. The aroma style of Dongjiu is neither the strong-aroma type nor the sauce-aroma type, but belongs to the other aroma type. Its production method is unique, combining the brewing techniques of both daqu and xiaoqu liquors.

　　 　　Dongjiu is produced at the Dongjiu Distillery in Zunyi, Guizhou, and is a high-quality daqu-based other aroma type Baijiu. It is world-renowned for its unique craftsmanship, classic style, and excellent quality, standing out uniquely among China’s famous liquors.

　　 　　Dongjiu is: a Dong-aroma type Baijiu. Dongjiu is colorless and crystal clear, with an elegant and comfortable aroma. It combines the rich fragrance of daqu liquor with the soft, mellow, well-balanced, and slightly sweet qualities of xiaoqu liquor, along with a subtle and refreshing medicinal fragrance and a pleasant hint of acidity. It tastes rich and mellow upon drinking, leaving a sweet and refreshing aftertaste. Due to its uniquely fragrant quality, it is hailed as the representative of the "Dong-aroma type," a distinctive category among other aroma type Baijius. Dongjiu is: a Dong-aroma type Baijiu (part of the other aroma types, which include all styles except strong-aroma and sauce-aroma; previously also referred to as complex-aroma, blended-aroma, or medicinal-aroma types). It is produced in the heart of China’s premium Baijiu region—Zunyi, Guizhou—and is one of China’s original eight famous liquors. In the 1980s, it was as renowned as Maotai, Wuliangye, and Luzhou Laojiao. It is one of only two national famous liquors from Guizhou Province (Maotai and Dongjiu). It is a national treasure deeply rooted in traditional Chinese culture, a true living fossil that continues the millennia-old heritage of Chinese brewing, representing the thousand-year-old traditional Chinese medicine and health culture, and is a distinctly traditional Chinese product with strong ethnic characteristics in the Baijiu industry.

　　 　　Dongjiu has won the title of “China Famous Liquor” four times at the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th National Liquor Appraisal Conferences, and has been awarded the National Gold Medal. Its production techniques and formula are unique in the world today, setting it apart in the distilled spirits industry and leading the national authorities to permanently classify it as a “state secret.” In August 2008, the national authorities officially established local standards for the “Dong-aroma type” Baijiu, and Dongjiu is the quintessential representative of this type within China.

　　 　　Zunyi has a very long history of liquor brewing. Archaeological findings prove that as early as the Paleolithic Age, some 100,000 to 200,000 years ago, humans lived and worked in the Zunyi area. Dongjiu follows the ancient origins of human brewing rooted in the concept of “food and medicine sharing the same source” and “liquor and medicine sharing the same origin,” with its brewing tradition traceable to ancient times, flourishing during the Wei, Jin, and Northern and Southern Dynasties, boasting a history spanning thousands of years. Guomiji Dongjiu (National Secret Dongjiu) refers to something classified as a state secret (i.e., confidential). The unique serial aroma distillation technique and formulas of Dongjiu, namely “Baicao Dan” (Hundred Herbs Single) and “Chansheng Dan” (Aroma Producing Single), have been classified as state secrets three times. In 1983, the Ministry of Light Industry listed Dongjiu’s techniques and formulas as a “Confidential” level scientific and technological secrecy project. In 1994 and 2006, the Ministry of Science and Technology and the State Secrecy Bureau reiterated that this project was a “State Secret Technology,” allowing external visits but forbidding introductions, photography, or external promotion, with an indefinite confidentiality period. As a result, Dongjiu is the only famous liquor to have been classified as a state secret three times.