Baijiu producers look to make splash overseas

Baijiu, or "clear liquor", is China's national drink and the world's most-consumed spirit by volume.

However, the drink has few fans outside China. "Most foreigners don't like baijiu," says Jim Boyce, a Canadian wine blogger in Beijing. "To a lot of foreigners who've tried it, baijiu smells like gasoline, and tastes like gasoline most of them hate it."

Boyce, who has lived in China for nine years, is an exception, and he writes about the liquor on his popular blog, Grape Wall of China. Like many expats, Boyce didn't like baijiu the first time he tried it. But after he sampled a few different varieties, the drink began to grow on him.

Many foreigners don't like baijiu just because it's too strong, Joyce says. A bottle of unblended baijiu is 50 to 60 percent alcohol by volume, while vodka and whiskey is around 40 percent. Some baijiu are watered down to 38 percent or lower, which makes it easier to stomach.

"All spirits take longer for people to appreciate, like straight gin," says Boyce.

Baijiu, which was invented around 2,000 years ago, goes through a complicated production process, giving it a special aroma and flavor. Chinese people consume 10 million kiloliters every year, according to Song Shuyu, deputy secretary general of the China Alcoholic Drinks Industry Association.

The demand for baijiu internationally is very low. China exported fewer than 14 million liters in 2013, which is around 1 percent of the amount consumed domestically. But that hasn't stopped some producers from trying to make a bigger splash overseas.

Shuijingfang, a baijiu produced in Sichuan, is available in 21 regions and countries, and international sales make up more than 10 percent of the company's total sales. "Getting recognition from foreigners is indeed a task for the internationalization of baijiu," the company says in a news release.

"But it doesn't mean that there are insurmountable obstacles. Just like foreign liquor has become a part of nightlife culture in China, Chinese baijiu can make breakthrough if we develop the culture behind baijiu."

Song says drinking the liquor is a part of Chinese culture, and people are more likely to open up to friends and family when they share a bottle of good baijiu. "There is a whole set of rituals and orders around bajiu drinking, such as respecting the guest and the older members of the family," says Song, a national-level baijiu maker and judge.

China has many different kinds of baijiu, made from ingredients such as rice, sorghum and sweet potato. "It would be unfair if you just tried one or a few different kinds of baijiu, and then said all baijiu is not good," Boyce says.

He says baijiu producers should organize tastings to introduce people to the different types, so they can find kinds they like.

In June 2013, Boyce and Korean Master of Wine Jeannie Cho Lee were invited to a baijiu tasting in Shanghai with Derek Sandhaus, the American author of the book, Baijiu: The Essential Guide to Chinese Spirits. In the book, Sandhaus profiles nearly 100 different kinds of baijiu.

"A little baijiu makes you happy, Boyce says. "And happiness can make you live longer."