Liquor according to its raw materials and production process, the formation of different aroma types and styles, liquor aroma type currently has 12 kinds, of which the most representative of the sauce type and strong flavor type.
Nowadays, the sauce wine is hot, and many wine friends turn from strong flavor to sauce aroma. But when asked why the sauce is fragrant, many wine friends answer that the sauce is better than the aroma, which is beneficial to human health, and as for where the good is, the answer is various.
In fact, the most fundamental reason for determining the quality of sauce-flavored liquor and aromatic liquor lies in the difference in the brewing process of the two, sauce-flavored liquor belongs to high-temperature Daqu, and strong flavored liquor belongs to medium-temperature Daqu.
Sauce wine chapter
Sauce-flavored liquor: also known as Maoxiang type, represented by Guizhou Moutai liquor, belongs to the Daqu liquor category. Its wine body has the characteristics of prominent sauce aroma, elegant and delicate, mellow wine body, long aftertaste, clear and transparent, and slightly yellowish color.
In all the liquors, the total acid contained in sauce-flavored liquor is quite high, up to 2.0g/l (in terms of acetic acid) or more, with a wide range of consumer groups, and the market development potential is very large. Its fermentation vessel is a stone wall mud bottom cellar pool, and the main aroma composition of the wine body is not clear.
The production process of sauce-flavored liquor can be summarized as "12987": the production cycle is as long as one year, and it has undergone two feedings, nine steaming, eight fermentations, seven wine extractions and other processes, and it takes 3-5 years of cellaring to reach its better flavor.
The characteristics of the production process of sauce-flavored liquor can be summarized as: four high and two long, one large and one more. The four highs are: high-temperature koji-making, high-temperature accumulation, high-temperature fermentation, high-temperature flowing wine; two long refers to: long production cycle, after one year; long storage time, generally need to be stored for more than 3 years. One refers to the large amount of koji, and the ratio of koji to grain quality reaches 1:1; one refers to multiple rounds of fermentation, that is, eight rounds of fermentation.
In the production process of sauce-flavored liquor, the first feeding is called xiasha, the second feeding is called rough sand, and it needs to go through eight fermentations after feeding, each fermentation is about one month, and a large cycle is about 10 months.
Fragrant article
Aromatic liquor: Represented by Luzhou Old Cellar Special Qu, it is also called "Luxiang Type". Aromatic liquor has the characteristics of strong aroma, soft and sweet, harmonious aroma, sweet entrance, falling mouth cotton, tail net remaining length, etc., which is also the main basis for judging the quality of strong aromatic liquor.
The main incense ingredient that constitutes the typical style of fragrant wine is ethyl caproate, and the fermentation container is a mud cellar, which is fermented by the feeding method of continuous bad ingredients, so there is a saying that "the thousand-year-old cellar is bad for thousands of years, the old cellar is brewed, and it is particularly fragrant", emphasizing the important role of the mud cellar in winemaking.
The raw material used in the production of aromatic liquor is mainly sorghum, but there are also a few distilleries that use a mixture of grain raw materials to make wine. Ingredients are made from fermented sake (mother's lees, old lees), which people call "10,000 years of bad". The phrase "a thousand-year-old cellar is bad for thousands of years" fully shows that the quality of strong aromatic liquor is closely related to the cellar and the bad.
"Raw incense depends on fermentation, Titian relies on distillation", indicating that liquor distillation is quite important. The purpose of distillation, on the one hand, is to make the alcohol components and aromatic substances in the mature wine liquor volatilize, concentrate and extract; at the same time, the impurities are eliminated through distillation to obtain the required finished wine.
Differences
First, the difference in brewing process
The strong aroma is a medium temperature big song, the production cycle is 40-60 days, and one pound of sorghum can produce three or two wines.
The sauce is a high temperature koji, 1 kg of sorghum can produce 2 two wines, and the production cycle is at least 5 years (1 year production period, 3 year aging period, 1 year after blending aging). Among them, the 1-year production cycle is only in the Dragon Boat Festival, heavy sun under the sand feeding.
Second, the difference in taste
Sauce-flavored liquor: elegant and delicate, empty cup left fragrant, mellow body, long aftertaste, highlighting the "strong";
Aromatic liquor: sweet and mellow, rich cellar aroma, harmonious aroma, clean and refreshing tail, highlighting "net".
Third, the cost difference
Aromatic fermentation using old cellar or artificial cultivation of the old cellar, the production cycle and storage period are generally only a few months, the general distillery has production, the market output is very high, so relatively cheap and now 70% of the liquor sold on the market is mainly fragrant.
Because of the complex production process and long cellaring period, the sauce-flavored type has a high cost in the market, which is especially suitable for high-end gifts and high-end banquet consumption.
Fourth, the impact on health
As long as the grain is fermented and moderately drunk, it will be beneficial to the body's blood circulation and heart. However, it is worth mentioning that the sauce-flavored liquor produced by the traditional Daqu method, after the intake of alcohols, acids, esters and other macromolecular substances, need to be slowly decomposed, the oral mucosa is stimulated small, and the polymer of the macromolecule is not easy to cross the cerebral blood barrier, and will not cause stimulation to the brain nerves, so after drinking the body, it will not be on fire headache.
And today's aromatic liquor blending phenomenon is more serious, but it is in line with the regulations and standards, a small amount of drinking will not have any impact on the body, but the taste may be difficult to achieve the taste of real pure grain wine, some people drink the head, and even dizziness headache.