Chapter 117: The National Liquor on Tiptoe

Maotai Town, located in Renhuai City, Zunyi, lies along the banks of the Chishui River. In 1915, Maotai won the gold medal at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition; in 1935, the Long March famously crossed the Chishui River here four times. Combining ancient salt culture, the heritage of the Long March, and the art of liquor brewing, it is hailed as the premier liquor town.

Visitors come to the town not only for the nationally renowned Maotai liquor but also because the streets and alleys are filled with distilleries bearing the name “Maotai Town Liquor,” creating a mixed and uneven landscape.

Zhuang Chen was deeply interested in the Maotai brewing process. He called Wei De to arrange an on-site visit, where they met a sales manager from one of the distilleries who warmly guided them on a tour.

Following the rich aroma, the group arrived at the workshop, where a dozen or so women dressed in simple blue garments busily filled rectangular wooden frames with fermentation starter. After filling the molds, they surprisingly danced barefoot on top with swift, graceful movements as if it were second nature.

Seeing Zhuang Chen’s astonished expression, Manager Hu chuckled, “No need to be surprised. This scene is called ‘stepping the starter’ in the brewing craft. Though it seems simple, it is the most crucial step.”

“The old saying goes: ‘The starter is the backbone of the liquor.’ As the saccharification and fermentation agent, the quality of the starter directly determines the flavor and style of the original liquor.”

“Look closely—these girls alternate their feet, pressing the starter into a turtle-shell pattern inside the rectangular frame. There are strict weight requirements for stepping. The pressed starters need to be tight on the outside but loose inside to facilitate crushing and fermentation.”

“Only young women with light bodies and just the right strength can achieve this. The ideal weight range is between 40 and 50 kilograms.”

Xia Long shivered violently, feeling a strange sensation rolling in his throat. Nauseated, he whispered, “I never thought that a bottle of Maotai worth thousands is actually made like this…”

Manager Hu laughed heartily, likely having encountered such reactions before, and said meaningfully, “At the Dragon Boat Festival, we step the starter; at the Double Ninth Festival, we spread the mash. During the Dragon Boat Festival, the distilleries enter their prime season for making starter, and many carefully selected young girls rush between the breweries.”

“It’s just like Western blondes stomping grapes. In ancient Maotai production, only untouched maidens qualified to make starter. Now, the policy has relaxed to unmarried girls.”

Zhuang Chen shook his head. He had heard from Ding Mengyao that in Europe, grape stomping occurs during harvest when young girls wash their legs, wear shorts, and dance barefoot in granite vats. The grape juice they stomp out is used to produce the finest wines. A few days ago, a popular show featured two male celebrities drinking this so-called “foot wash.”

“Stepping the starter involves crushing wheat flour, mixing it with water and mother starter, then placing it in wooden boxes. After washing their feet with flowers, the girls stand on the boxes and stomp repeatedly until the starter is properly formed.”

Manager Hu, feigning solemnity, continued, “Modern microbiology has found that this tradition of stepping starter, passed down for thousands of years, is the crystallization of the ancient people’s production experience and holds great scientific value.”

“In the fifth lunar month, our temperature is high, humidity is great, and sunlight abundant. The microorganisms in the natural environment thrive and multiply, presenting the greatest diversity.”

“Stepping the starter allows these microbes to fully contact the wheat and other raw materials, forming a high-quality brewing microbial community.”

“The girls’ feet secrete little, and mold is minimal. Even when they sweat during stepping, the amount is small, ensuring the starter’s pH remains stable and the raw materials stay purely natural.”

“Most importantly, the balance, rapid growth, and diversity of these brewing microbes guarantee that only liquor brewed with such superior starter can match the reputation of the national liquor!”

Zhuang Chen gave a thumbs-up, thinking what nonsense Manager Hu was seriously spouting!

Watching the young maidens stepping enthusiastically nearby, all sweating profusely, a sudden idea struck him: this scene should be shared online. Foot fetishes are trendy nowadays, right? That alone would surely boost Maotai sales!

“The crushed wheat starter is formed into blocks, wrapped in straw, and stored. After about ten days, the blocks are turned over—flipped top to bottom—so every side fully contacts the microbes. This turning is generally done twice…”

“After another 30 to 40 days, the blocks are ready to be removed, then cut into fragments—the finer, the better. They are washed several times with boiling water above 90 degrees Celsius, stirred and rinsed to ensure even water absorption by the raw materials. This removes dregs and hydrates the sorghum…”

“The steamed sorghum is then taken out and spread by workers using shovels to cool, replenishing lost moisture from evaporation. The temperature is lowered to about 35 degrees Celsius…”

“The most critical secret lies in the starter blending. The overall ratio of sorghum to starter is one to one, but the starter is added in nine separate batches, each varying in quantity. This is the distillery’s closely guarded secret.”

After completing the tour, they arrived at the warehouse. Manager Hu scooped a bowl of freshly brewed Maotai from a jar and presented it, “This is the just-distilled batch, with a strong pungency. After long aging, its flavor becomes mellow and smooth, with a more pronounced sauce aroma. The longer it’s stored, the smoother and more elegant the fragrance.”

He handed it to Zhuang Chen, who wrinkled his brow after tasting. Manager Hu smiled, “Each batch of liquor has a different aroma, divided into three types: sauce aroma, mellow sweetness, and cellar bottom. The third to fifth batches are the best and called ‘great return liquor.’”

“The sixth batch is called ‘small return liquor,’ the seventh is ‘chasing mash liquor.’ Among them, the third, fourth, and fifth batches taste best. The first two are sour, bitter, and spicy; the last is burnt and bitter. But every batch has its use; all products are blended from different batches.”

Pointing to a nearby laboratory, he added, “Blending is a mysterious process. The master blender uses taste to match, like the five elements interacting, balancing and layering flavors by mixing different batches.”

Zhuang Chen nodded. Since it was a secret, they couldn’t tour inside. His curiosity was satisfied, and the group left the factory grounds.

In recent years, Maotai, as the industry leader, has continuously risen. On New Year’s Day 2017, the factory price rose by an average of 18%, with retail prices exceeding 2,000 yuan per bottle. When the leader moves, others follow suit.

In April 2011, a bottle of Han Emperor Maotai sold for a staggering 9.968 million yuan at auction. The 2012 Goethe Spring Auction of aged Maotai gathered a total turnover of 140 million yuan, including one bottle of Guizhou Maotai Five-Star selling for 4.945 million.

The most expensive domestic liquor is a 1935 bottle of Laimao, purchased by a wealthy man from Ningde, Mr. Lai, for 10.7 million yuan, becoming the true king of baijiu.

Manager Hu led them to the sales department and sat down to chat. “Once, some netizens calculated the cost of producing one jin [about 0.5 kg] of Maotai: wheat costs 3 to 4 yuan per jin, sorghum about 4.5 yuan per jin, and one jin of sorghum yields about 200 ml of liquor. So the cost of a 500 ml bottle is only 50 yuan?”

“That’s nonsense!” He stood up, took out a bottle of ten-year aged Maotai, and said, “Nowadays, sorghum costs 15 to 17 yuan per jin, wheat starter costs 3 to 5 yuan. A distillery with 48 fermentation pits spends 50,000 yuan per year on their upkeep. Water and electricity cost 140,000 yuan per month, coal 630 yuan per ton, plus wages, taxes, and pit fees.”

“Nine rounds of steaming, eight rounds of fermentation, seven rounds of distillation. From raw material input to product release, even the most ordinary Maotai takes at least five years. The process involves starter preparation, fermentation, storage, blending, packaging—thirty steps and 165 procedures in total.”

“A skilled master brewer earns at least 200,000 yuan a year. They monopolize the best sorghum and store various base liquors. Even if other distilleries throw money to poach our staff, without good liquor to blend, it’s useless. As the saying goes, ‘A clever housewife cannot cook without rice.’”