Huangjiu (literally "yellow wine" or "yellow liquor") is a type of Chinese alcoholic beverage brewed directly from grains such as rice, millet, or wheat. Unlike baijiu, such liquors are not distilled, and contain less than 20% alcohol, due to the inhibition of fermentation by ethanol at that concentration. These wines are traditionally pasteurized, aged, and filtered before their final bottling for sale to consumers. The various styles of huangjiu may vary in color from clear to beige, yellowish-brown, or reddish-brown.Huangjiu is either drunk directly after being cooled or warmed, or used in Chinese cooking. Major producers of huangjiu include China and Taiwan.
Some of the most popular yellow liquors include: Mijiu is the generic name for Chinese fermented rice wine, similar to Japanese sake. It is generally clear, and is used for both drinking and cooking. Mijiu intended for cooking often contains 1.5% salt. Alcohol content by volume: 12-19.5%. Fujian glutinous rice wine is made by adding a long list of expensive Chinese medicinal herbs to glutinous rice and a low alcohol distilled rice wine. The unique brewing technique uses another wine as raw material, instead of starting with water. The wine has an orange-red color. Alcohol content by volume: 18%. Huadiao jiu is a variety of huangjiu that originates from Shaoxing, in the eastern coastal province of Zhejiang. It is made of glutinous rice and wheat. This wine evolved from the Shaoxing tradition of burying nu'er hong wine underground when a daughter was born, and digging it up for the wedding banquet when the daughter was to be married. Huadiao jiu, nü'er hong, Shaoxing jiu and hong lu jiu are basically made of the same wine except they are named differently depending on the age, the container, and how they are used. It is not uncommon for some varieties of huadiao jiu to be aged for 50 years or more. Shaoxing jiu is commonly used in Chinese cooking as well as for drinking, and hong lu jiu is a lower grade used primarily for cooking. The reddish color of these wines is imparted by red yeast rice.
