Chinese Spirits Beyond Baijiu, in 5 Minutes

For centuries, China's spirit was baijiu. Today, the country is also learning to make the world's other great spirits, and doing it in its own way. Five minutes, six questions.

1. A new spirits country

China is the world's biggest market for many drinks, and a new generation of drinkers is curious about whisky, gin and cocktails. The world's biggest drinks groups have noticed, and so have Chinese entrepreneurs and baijiu producers. The result is a new spirits country being built in real time.

2. Whisky

The biggest story. Since 2021, Pernod Ricard, Diageo and others have opened malt whisky distilleries in China, followed by Chinese and international investors:

• **The Chuan**, at the foot of Mount Emei in Sichuan, by Pernod Ricard.
• **YunTuo**, in the highlands of Yunnan, by Diageo.
• **Guqi**, in Anhui, by the Cognac house Camus with the baijiu maker Gujinggong.
• **Nine Rivers**, in the mountains of Fujian.

Chinese whisky is a newborn category, and one of the most watched in the spirits world.

3. Gin

Craft gin arrived in the big cities, starting in Shanghai, with Chinese botanicals such as Sichuan pepper, lotus flower, osmanthus, Buddha's hand citron and tea. Peddlers Gin, distilled with rare Eastern botanicals, is one of the pioneers. These gins taste of China in a way that whisky is only beginning to.

4. Brandy

The oldest of the three. Changyu, the historic winery of Yantai, made China's first brandy in 1914, and won international recognition at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco in 1915. Chinese brandy is still made today, mostly for the domestic market.

5. Liqueurs

Sweet and fragrant liqueurs are popular with young drinkers:

• **Green plum wine** (青梅酒): sweet, tangy and light.
• **Osmanthus wine** (桂花酒): floral, linked to the Mid-Autumn Festival.

They are lower in alcohol, served cold or on ice, and they are changing how a new generation drinks.

6. Where to start

With a Chinese gin in a simple gin and tonic, to taste Chinese botanicals. Then, when you find one, a Chinese single malt, neat or in a highball. And for something sweet, a glass of green plum wine on ice.

In one sentence

Beyond baijiu, China is making whisky, gin and brandy with Chinese ingredients and ambitions, and the world is watching.