Hongchuan Liquor

Hongchuan Liquor

Hongchuan Liquor is a protected geographical indication product.

　　Hongchuan Liquor

　　 The current administrative region of Hongchuan Town, Cheng County, Longnan City, Gansu Province

　　 Gansu Provincial Government Document "Cheng County People's Government Request for Delineation of the Geographic Indication Product Protection Area of Hongchuan Liquor," Cheng Zheng Fa [2012] No. 34

　　 Enterprise standard of Gansu Hongchuan Liquor Industry Co., Ltd.: Q/GHJ028-2012 "Hongchuan Liquor"

　　Quality and Technical Requirements of Hongchuan Liquor

　　I. Raw Materials

　　1. Sorghum: Selected glutinous red sorghum, with branched starch accounting for over 90% of the total starch content. Quality meets the relevant national standards.

　　2. Wheat: Selected high-quality wheat, with crude protein content between 9.9% and 18.5%. Quality meets the relevant national standards.

　　3. Corn: Selected high-quality corn. Quality meets the relevant national standards.

　　4. Rice: Selected high-quality rice. Quality meets the relevant national standards.

　　5. Glutinous Rice: Uses glutinous rice that meets the quality standards for premium glutinous rice. Quality meets the relevant national standards.

　　6. Barley: Uses high-quality barley, meeting the relevant national standards.

　　7. Brewing Water: Sourced from well water within the production area, with a pH value of 6.5 to 7.0. Water quality meets the relevant national standards.

　　II. Daqu (Fermentation Starter)

　　1. Daqu Production Process: Inspection of wheat and barley (2:1) → Soaking of wheat and barley → Crushing → Mixing → Kneading → Fermentation in fermentation room for 30 days → Detection and storage of finished starter → Aged for 4 to 6 months before use.

　　2. Sensory Indicators of Finished Daqu: Surface features evenly distributed fine grayish-white filaments, thin skin, neat fracture surface, yellow-red core, uniformly distributed mycelium, vigorous reproduction and growth, strong fermentation aroma.

　　III. Brewing Process

　　1. Fermentation Pits: Made from local red clay, all with a pit age of over 40 years.

　　2. Daqu: Uses Daqu produced in accordance with the production process specified in these quality and technical requirements.

　　3. Fermentation Period: Fermentation in pits for ≥75 days, double-wheel bottom fermentation for ≥150 days.

　　4. Pit Mud Cultivation: Based on original old pit mud, using traditional pit mud cultivation methods.

　　5. Steaming and Fermentation: Uses continuous spent grain fermentation, mixed steaming and mixed firing, traditional six-vat process. Ingredient ratio: no less than 50% sorghum, no more than 20% rice, and no more than 10% each for glutinous rice, wheat, and corn.

　　6. Separate distillation by stages (head, middle, tail), cutting heads and tails, and selective collection by quality segments, then blending by quality.

　　7. Storage of Base Liquor and Flavoring Liquor: Base liquor is stored in clay pots for no less than one year; flavoring liquor is stored in clay pots or ceramic jars (jiuhai) for no less than three years.

　　8. Prohibited Practices: No addition of edible alcohol or flavoring substances not derived from Baijiu fermentation during the production process.

　　IV. Quality Characteristics

　　1. Sensory Characteristics

　　Item

　　 Requirement

　　Alcohol Content

　　 Alcohol content above 50%vol

　　 Alcohol content between 41–49%vol

　　Color and Clarity

　　 Colorless or slightly yellow, clear and transparent, free from suspended matter and sediment.

　　Aroma

　　 Rich cellar aroma, natural aged fragrance, pleasant.

　　Taste

　　 Smooth, sweet, clean, mellow, rich, with harmonious flavors,

　　long-lasting aftertaste, full-bodied.

　　 Smooth and mellow, sweet and refreshing, with harmonious flavors, long-lasting and clean aftertaste.

　　Style

　　 Possesses the unique style of this product

　　 Possesses the typical style of this product

　　Note: When the temperature of the liquor is below 10°C, the presence of white flocculent substances or slight cloudiness is allowed. It will gradually return to normal within a certain period when the temperature rises above 10°C. This is a normal phenomenon.

　　2. Physicochemical Indicators:

　　Item

　　 Requirement

　　Alcohol Content

　　 Above 50%vol

　　 41–49%vol

　　Total Acidity (as acetic acid)

　　 ≥0.60 (g/l)

　　 ≥0.50 (g/l)

　　Total Esters (as total hexanoate esters)

　　 ≥2.00 (g/l)

　　 ≥2.00 (g/l)

　　Ethyl hexanoate

　　 1.5-2.8 (g/l)

　　 1.5-2.8 (g/l)

　　Solids

　　 ≤0.4 (g/l)

　　 ≤0.5 (g/l)

　　Note: The alcohol content is allowed an error of ±1.0% vol:

　　3. Safety and other quality technical requirements: The product’s safety and other quality technical requirements must comply with relevant national regulations.