Chinese Sorghum Whiiskies

If a spirit distilled from fermented grain is whisky, so are these chinese sorghum spirits. Unlike western whiskies, which are mostly fermented using malted barley, Chinese sorghum whiskies are fermented using a daqu which is a complex misture of grains, and sometimes peas, and other ingredients, that are allowed to mold and fester, until it can stimulate fermentation.

Shown above, left to right:

Red Star^™ Er Gou Tou is better-selling than any western whiskey. It is the most common of the commoner's spirits. It is called er guo tou, which means 'head of the second pot,' or 'second distilaltion.' Kweichow^™ Moutai is considered to be a separate type of product in China, due to the long process of fermentation, and due to the aging. As a type, it is considered to be moutai or maotai and it is made in the Guizhou (or Kweichow) region.

Both types and brands are considered to be baijiu, or 'white alcohol,' in China.

Kweichou^™ Moutai was affordable in the early years of the twenty-first century. It was then that I created the Moutai Mary with it. Now it is a plaything of Chinese millionaires and sells for hundreds of dollars. The Chinese Mary, made with Red Star^™ has taken over in my repertoire from the Moutai Mary. The Chinese Mary has virtually the same taste as the Moutai Mary did, and like its forerunner, I like it better than the Bloody Mary.