Types and Characteristics of Chinese Alcoholic Beverages
Types and Characteristics of Chinese Alcoholic Beverages
All beverages containing ethanol (alcohol) are considered alcohol. There are many types, classified differently based on production methods, alcohol content, and commercial conventions. By commercial convention, they are divided into five major categories: spirits, yellow wine, fruit wine, medicinal wine, and beer. By production method, they fall into three types: distilled spirits, fermented beverages, and blended wines. By alcohol content, they are categorized as high-alcohol (above 40°), medium-alcohol (20°–40°), and low-alcohol (below 20°). Wines, yellow wine, fruit wines, and beer all belong to low-alcohol beverages. Market products labeled as "low-alcohol spirits" below 39° are actually medium-alcohol.
China traditionally follows commercial conventions for classification. Below are characteristics of spirits, yellow wine, fruit wine, beer, and medicinal wine, helping readers choose suitable options based on their physical condition and needs, enjoying moderate, small servings.
Spirits: A high-concentration alcoholic beverage made from grains or tubers. Unlike fruit wine and yellow wine, spirits are produced via distillation, with alcohol content typically around 50–60°. Even today’s popular "low-alcohol spirits" usually exceed 30°. China is a world-renowned ancient civilization of wine culture, standing uniquely in global winemaking history. From Maotai-style sauce-aroma spirits, Fenjiu-style clear-aroma spirits, Wuliangye-style strong-aroma spirits, etc., a distinctive family of diverse aroma types has formed. Spirits emphasize color, aroma, and taste—clear and transparent, fragrant and enticing, with unique aroma profiles. Sauce-aroma spirits are mellow and rich, with elegant fragrance and lingering aftertaste; clear-aroma spirits are pure and fresh, smooth and gentle, with clean finish (e.g., Fenjiu, Xifengjiu, Hengshui Lao Gan); strong-aroma spirits excel in "fragrance, sweetness, richness, and purity," with intense aroma and long-lasting aftertaste (this category includes many famous brands: Wuliangye, Jianan Chun, Luzhou Laojiao, Gujing Gongjiu, Yanghe Daqu, Quanxing Daqu, Shuanggou Daqu); another type is rice-aroma spirits, characterized by honey-like fragrance, sweet and smooth entry, pleasant aftertaste (e.g., Guilin Sanhua Wine). Mixed-aroma spirits, as the name suggests, combine multiple aromas—different scents emerge in smelling, tasting, and lingering—such as Dongjiu.
Yellow Wine: Named for its color, also called "old wine," a low-alcohol beverage with alcohol content generally between 15% and 20%. Made from grains, yellow wine differs from spirits in production—using pressing filtration techniques, preserving glucose, dextrin, glycerol, minerals, acetic acid, aldehydes, esters, and other substances generated during fermentation. Analysis shows yellow wine provides far more calories than beer or wine. It contains over ten amino acids, most of which are essential and cannot be synthesized by the human body. Tests reveal lysine content in yellow wine is richest among all nutritional beverages globally—earning it the title "liquid cake." Due to lower alcohol content than distilled spirits, yellow wine is not only nutritious but also possesses functions like replenishing blood and qi, aiding digestion, relaxing tendons and blood, strengthening the spleen and stomach, and dispelling wind and cold—thus widely used in medicine for treatment and preparation. Examples include Shaoxing Jiafanjiu, Zhuangyuan Hong, Jimo Laojiu.
Fruit Wine: Fermented from fruits. Due to its superior yield, quality, variety, and fame, wine surpasses other fruit wines and naturally represents the category. Since wine undergoes no distillation, it belongs to fermented beverages, preserving most nutrients from fresh grapes. During fermentation and aging, biochemical changes generate new beneficial substances for the body. These components form wine’s unique flavor and nutritional profile. Wine contains alcohol, acids, sugars, esters, minerals, proteins, various amino acids, and multiple vitamins. Therefore, moderate consumption greatly benefits health—nourishing, invigorating, improving appetite, aiding digestion, and showing good preventive and therapeutic effects for cardiovascular diseases, anemia, low blood pressure, and neurasthenia. With low alcohol content (typically 8–24°), most domestically produced wines in China are around 12°.
Beer: A globally popular, universally enjoyed nutritious beverage for all ages. "Beer" is a transliteration from foreign languages. It has only been introduced to China for over a century. Beer is made by malted barley, sugarization, adding hops and yeast, then fermenting. It is the lowest-alcohol beverage, with only 3–5° alcohol content, yet rich in nutrients—besides water and carbohydrates, it contains hops, proteins, carbon dioxide, abundant amino acids, calcium, phosphorus, and vitamins. Tests show one liter of 12° beer (the degree indicated on bottles is not alcohol content but original wort percentage, i.e., sugar content) equals the nutrition of 770 grams of milk or 210 grams of bread. Thus, beer is famously known as the "liquid bread." Additionally, hops contain volatile aromatic oils, giving beer its distinctive scent and refreshing bitterness, conferring medicinal benefits like improving appetite, promoting urination, and calming nerves. Carbon dioxide gives beer its ability to cool and relieve heat.
Medicinal Wine: A blended wine, traditionally called "jiuji" in Chinese medicine. It is made using spirits, edible alcohol, yellow wine, or wine, selecting different prescriptions based on specific conditions and preparing through various methods—mostly by soaking herbs. Medicinal wine is a traditional Chinese product. Li Shizhen’s "Compendium of Materia Medica" lists 69 medicinal wines, many still in use today. Medicinal wines vary widely in type and effect, offering both tonifying and therapeutic functions.
Generally, wines with tonifying effects are called "tonic wines," while those with therapeutic effects are "medicinal wines." Depending on the base alcohol used, alcohol content varies. Medicinal wines are concentrated, targeted, fast-acting, easy to use, store, and carry—widely applied in internal medicine, surgery, and gynecology. However, due to their strong alcohol content, usage is limited; some patients should not take them orally—clinical use must follow medical advice, avoiding misuse.