Rice wine, also known as mijiu, is the eastern alcoholic beverage made from
rice, originated from China. Unlike European wine, which is made by
fermentation of naturally occurring sugars in sweet grapes and other fruit,
rice wine is made from the fermentation of rice starch that has been
converted to sugars. The process is somewhat similar to the mashing process
used in beer and whiskey production but differs in the source of the enzymes
that convert starch to sugars. In rice and other cereal wines, microbes are
the source of the enzymes whereas beer, ale and whiskey production utilizes
the enzymes naturally occurring in sprouted barley.
Strictly speaking, wine is the product of fermenting grape juice. Alcoholic
beverages produced by fermenting the starch found in cereal grains like rice
are thus not technically wine as such. As they utilize grains, so-called
starch or cereal wines such as Japanese sake or Chinese huangjiu could be
considered more akin to beer than wine, yet the finished alcoholic beverage
is so disparate from beer that this description is very misleading. The
organoleptic qualities of a fermented cereal beverage such as rice wine are
much more like grape wine and this is often the context used for its
description. Rice wine typically has a higher alcohol content, 20%–45% ABV,
than grape wine (9%–16%), which in turn has a higher alcohol content than
beer (usually 3%–12%). Rice wines are used in Asian gastronomy much the same
way as grape wines are used in European cuisine, e.g. at formal dinners and
banquets and in cooking. Secondly, rice wines are used in a religious and
ceremonial context in a manner that grape wine was used in ancient Greek and
Roman civilizations and is still used in the modern Christian eucharist
ceremony. Rice wines are also revered in the arts and literature of Asian
cultures much the same way grape wine is in European culture. Beer is rarely
used in any of the former contexts, so in the eyes of many rice wine is the
correct cultural translation for the fermented cereal beverages of Asia.
As with Guilin, the local drink is Guihua-Rice-Wine (Osmanthus Wine,with
colors varying from pale yellow to yellow), made from Yulong village, 25%–35% ABV, which in turn has a higher
alcohol content than beer (usually 4%–12%).This
Osmanthus wine flavours rice wines with full osmanthus blossoms and is
traditionally consumed during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Next to the F hotel there is a traditional rice wine factory.They still make
rice wine here in a traditional way. The owner discovered that the rice wine
goes very well with the taste of the osmanthus flower, so he mixed these
flavors with the wine. That resulted in a sweet light tasting and a very
nice osmanthus smell.
You can taste the osmanthus wine yourself, and even see how wine
is made in the winery. If you want to visit the winery, please ask one of
the staff.