Baijiu for Western palates? Distillers refine China’s No 1 spirit to widen its appeal

Makers of the Chinese spirit baijiu are reformulating the fiery grain liquid to appeal to a wider client base, including cocktail drinkers in New York, Los Angeles and London.

While sales in China are still rising, top baijiu makers such as Kweichow Moutai face far slower growth than in the past as younger consumers increasingly opt for alternatives to the country’s national spirit.

Now, in an effort to find new pockets of growth, some major makers of the colourless spirit are starting to pitch it to Western consumers outside China for the first time.

Baijiu is little known in the United States, United Kingdom and Europe, however, so many Western drinkers would have to learn to like the flavour.

Baijiu, which translates as “white alcohol”, usually has between 40 per cent and 60 per cent alcohol content. It is generally distilled from sorghum, although wheat, barley, millet or glutinous rice are also used.