By Jim Boyce | I wrote a piece about baijiu, primarily aimed at foreigners who loathe the stuff due to harrowing ganbei-style experiences, for China Daily last month. It appeared just before the Chinese New Year holidays, an exceptionally heavy baijiu-drinking period
The article included tips not only for coping with baijiu but also for developing a taste for the stuff. The main one: do comparative tastings to underscore how not all baijius taste the same and, in turn, help you find a preferred style. (I also described the main styles and suggested a few brands for each.)
Other tips: buy baijius with lower alcohol levels (say, 40 percent rather than 52 percent), serve it over ice (I find this works especially well with fenjiu) and try some home infusions.
Lots of people will grimace and reject all of this advice, so poor has been their experience with baijiu. But for the curious, it offers a few “beyond ganbei” ways to try this booze. And if you are interested in more about China’s national spirit, check out my World Baijiu Day site and its feeds on Twitter and Facebook.
You can find the full China Daily article here.
Check out 京B Daily for weather, air quality, and other updates. Plus sibling blogs Grape Wall of China and World Baijiu Day.
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Get regular Beijing updates via my Instagram and Twitter feeds. Also see my sibling sites Grape Wall of China, World Baijiu Day and World Marselan Day. Help cover the hosting and other costs of these sites with a WeChat, AliPay or PayPal donation.
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