Wu Zhong Yellow Rice Wine

Wu Zhong Yellow Rice Wine

　　Wu Zhong — The craft of brewing yellow rice wine is highly refined. To make the wine, one must first prepare the ingredients. On the sixth day of the sixth lunar month, wild chrysanthemums are gathered, and dregs (residue from boiled traditional Chinese medicine), wheat, and distiller’s yeast (known as "brewing yeast") are used to make the starter. Plump glutinous rice is cooked into a porridge-like consistency and combined with the starter in a jar, then sealed with cool boiled water for fermentation. After fermenting for about 40 days, the wine is ready. Typically, it is filtered using a coarse sieve or bamboo strainer inserted into the brew, then boiled before drinking. This might be the origin of what ancient people referred to as “sieved wine.” The filtered and boiled yellow rice wine is bright yellow in color, sweet, mellow, and fragrant, with a hint of slight sourness and bitterness. It is refreshing and appetizing, invigorating the spirit and lifting the mood. Drinking it during the wheat harvest season also helps relieve summer heat and quench thirst.

　　 Yellow rice wine is rich in vitamins and sugars, and contains a wealth of amino acids, earning it the title of “the king of alcoholic beverages.” Aged and well-stored yellow rice wine is considered the best, which is why people often refer to aged liquor as yellow rice wine. During the Spring Festival or festive occasions such as weddings and funerals, it is filtered and stored in jars ahead of time to serve guests.

　　 Those who have tried yellow rice wine often praise it endlessly, savoring its lasting aftertaste. Yellow rice wine is typically enjoyed with side dishes and a platter of dried fruits. The side dishes are mainly cold dishes, featuring both meat and vegetables. The dried fruit platter includes baked goods (homemade snacks), almonds, peanuts, melon seeds, red dates, fried dough twists, and more, with a variety of items filling the table and stimulating the appetite. If yellow rice wine is boiled with scrambled eggs in oil, served alongside crispy layered flatbread, it offers a uniquely delightful flavor.