Spirit beverage development in the Asia-China region

This chapter discusses the history of wine, the Chinese distilled spirit ‘baijiu’ and Chinese whisky production. The earliest evidence of making wine was found in Henan Province in 7000 BCE. Since then, the Chinese have brewed many different types of rice wine. Baijiu has been distilled for at least 800 years. Because of the long history of baijiu, it has created its own style and complexity. Strong and mild flavour types of baijiu are consumed the most. In this chapter, the production of two major flavour types is discussed, including the production of Qu, substrate cooking, solid fermentation, and distillation. The future challenges and the market opportunity of baijiu are now focussed on the younger generation. Although they appreciate the beauty of the product and the wisdom of the ancients, they now have many alcoholic beverage choices. Not only baijiu, but whisky and other spirit drinks are attractive to them. In addition, more and more whisky brands are coming into China. There are several distillery projects in progress; therefore, there is a need to introduce regulations for the Chinese whisky industry. The Taiwanese have turned from baijiu consumers into whisky lovers, and the history of Taiwanese whisky development and its regulations are discussed. Taiwanese whisky has earned its place in the whisky world, with Taiwanese distilleries producing sought-after products.