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Fermentation Atlas

Alcoholic drinks from Fenyang

Qingxiang (light-aroma) baijiu — Fenjiu ground-jar process清香型白酒

Steamed sorghum is mixed with a low-temperature daqu starter and fermented as a damp solid for about four weeks in earthen jars buried in the ground, then distilled. The spent grain gets fresh daqu and ferments a second time before a second distillation, and the two spirits are graded, stored and blended. Light-aroma baijiu is clean and fruity, led by ethyl acetate and ethyl lactate. Made in 7 steps over 49 days. The longest step, first fermentation in buried earthen jars (dacha), takes 28 days (Huang X 2020) and runs at 17–30 °C (Pang X.-N 2018). Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the main ethanol maker and Pichia kudriavzevii and Saccharomycopsis fibuligera do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step28 daysReported[huang2020][qu2025]First fermentation in buried earthen jars (dacha)
Temperature17–30 °CMeasured[pang2018]First fermentation in buried earthen jars (dacha)
AciditypH 3.5–3.8Measured[pang2018]First fermentation in buried earthen jars (dacha)
Fully documentedAlcoholic drinks49 daysMore alcoholic drinksMore from China

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedIndustrial process with no published batch recipe in the sources used here. One earthen jar holds about 260 L.
Sorghum · The main raw material[huang2020]
Low-temperature daqu · Brick starter made from barley and peas[huang2020]
Starter: koji/qu/mold-starter (low-temperature daqu)

Total time across the recorded steps: 49 days

Start
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What changes: The sorghum is steamed on its own, without any old grain

Step 1 of 7
Steam the sorghum on its own (qingzheng)
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Moulds
Saccharomyces
Lactobacilli sour
Lactobacilli
Bacillus survive

The fresh grain is steamed without old fermented grain mixed in, unlike mud-pit styles. Output: steamed sorghum.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

What makes this one different

Light-aroma baijiu ferments in pottery jars buried in the ground, not in the mud pits used for strong- and sauce-aroma baijiu. The fresh sorghum is steamed on its own, and each lot of grain is fermented and distilled only twice.

Related ferments

Variants

  • ErguotouBeijing light-aroma baijiu.
  • Xiaoqu qingxiangUses rice-based small qu instead of daqu; Sichuan, Chongqing and Yunnan.
  • Proso millet baijiu (Shanxi)A newer Shanxi light-aroma product made from proso millet.

Safety

No product-specific safety limit was found in the sources used. Batches made right after the summer break are lower in acid and ester, a quality issue rather than a safety one.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Production at Xinghuacun pauses in July and August because heat lowers yield and quality. The year runs in three periods, starting with Lipai in September.

  1. [pang2018] Pang X.-N., Han B.-Z., Huang X.-N., Zhang X., Hou L.-F., Cao M., Gao L.-J., Hu G.-H., Chen J.-Y. 2018, Effect of the environment microbiota on the flavour of light-flavour baijiu during spontaneous fermentation, Scientific Reports 8:3396 (samples from the Fenjiu distillery)paper
  2. [huang2020] Huang X., Fan Y., Lu T., Kang J., Pang X., Han B., Chen J. 2020, Composition and metabolic functions of the microbiome in fermented grain during light-flavor baijiu fermentation, Microorganisms 8(9):1281 (samples from the Fenjiu distillery)paper
  3. [xue2022] Xue Y., Tang F., Cai W., Zhao X., Song W., Zhong J., Liu Z., Guo Z., Shan C. 2022, Bacterial diversity, organic acid, and flavor analysis of dacha and ercha fermented grains of Fen flavor baijiu, Frontiers in Microbiology 12:769290paper
  4. [qu2025] Qu D., Wang Y., Cao L., Hou Q., Liu Z., Zhong J., Guo Z. 2025, Combined microbiome and metabolome analysis of dacha and ercha fermented grains of Fen-flavor baijiu, Food Chemistry Molecular Sciences, 100298paper
  5. [wp-fenjiu] Wikipedia, Xinghuacun Fenjiu (outline only)wiki