Looks like some baijiu producers are giving stiff drinks a whole new meaning by including Viagra in the recipe. From Reuters:
The Liuzhou Food and Drug Administration said that it found the Guikun Alcohol Plant and the Deshun Alcohol Plant in Guangxi’s Liuzhou city were putting Sildenafil, more commonly known as Viagra, into three of their baijiu products…. Law enforcement officers have confiscated 5,357 bottles of the suspect products, 1,124 kg of raw alcohol and a batch of white powder labeled Sildenafil, in a case worth more than 700,000 yuan ($112,726), according to a statement posted by the Liuzhou Food and Drug Administration on its website on Saturday.
Financial Times reports the practice is even more widespread:
At least 51 distillers have added doses of Sildenafil — the generic name for Viagra — in their spirits, according to the State Food and Drug Administration.
Meanwhile, China Daily has published a story about The Hide in London, which includes baijiu on its drinks menu.
After returning from Beijing, [co-owner Paul] Mathew brought back his knowledge of baijiu to The Hide, a bar he opened nine years ago near London Bridge, in the heart of London. The bar serves two baijiu brands, Wen Jun and Shuijingfang. The bar is conveniently located next to the Wine & Spirit Education Trust, a drinks education provider, and very often students who hear about baijiu pass by the bar to try it. Although many Londoners still don’t know about baijiu, the bartenders at The Hide introduce the history and production processes to customers and allow them to try it, and during the World Baijiu Day his staff will be serving a range of innovative cocktails with the spirit.
Get the full story here.
And check out this article by Angela Tchou on Serious Eats about her exploration of baijiu as a Chinese-American, including an interesting tasting with her father
“You have to be ready to drink,” Ba told me when I came home for a week in June. I’d been keeping him abreast of my reporting for this story, yet he was still determined to guide me through the history of baijiu and the proper way to drink it.
My father is equal parts bon vivant and academic savant. He can sweetly and thoroughly expound on the history and merits of Scotch while drinking you cleanly under the table. He has, unsurprisingly, a special expertise in baijiu, and in the past 10 years or so has amassed a very impressive collection, around 30 bottles bought here and there when he can find it in specialty shops.
Get the full story here.
Founded in 2015, World Baijiu Day is held each August 9, with events in over 60 cities so far. Follow WBD on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. And get in touch via spirit (at) worldbaijiuday.com.
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