Mysterious Authentic Drink

Most people can’t abide baijiu (Chinese white spirit) and just mention of the word is enough to send a shiver down their spine. Its fiery taste and intense smell means that it has gained a bit of stigma, a drink to be avoided. But with the creative efforts of Shanghainese bartenders, baijiu is fast becoming more attractive.

Home-infused alcohol suddenly became a hot trend across the world in 2011. Bottles with turbid liquid inside became overnight an inherent element of the décor of many reputable bars in London and New York. Shanghai was no exception, and Pu’er tea infused whisky, cinnamon infused rum, and pepper infused vodka cocktails were all the rage for a while, to the extent that they have now become nothing out-of-the-ordinary. But baijiu infusions? Can baijiu even be mixed?

Baijiu is a traditional Chinese spirit distilled from sorghum (a type of grass) with an intense smell and distinctive “burning” taste. In Chinese culture, it has played a traditional role for decades in signifying respect and dignity by toasting baijiu during banquets and ceremonies of commemoration.

But the general attitude to it nowadays is that it is no longer “cool” to drink baijiu, with many favouring wine as an alternative tipple. Which is why Ryan Noreiks is trying to breathe new life into this tradition at Le Sheng.

He has added a selection of baijiu shots infused with spices and fruits to the drink list: with plum and hibiscus, chrysanthemum and lemon skin, and green tea, peach and chamomile flavoured baijiu infusions (all RMB 50). Once blended, the distinctive “baijiu taste” changes and becomes less harsh on the palate, and instead pretty smooth. “Normally baijiu is not served for cocktails, but it goes well with Shanghainese food, so we’ve tried to adapt it to what we serve here,” says Noreiks. “We are trying to appeal to both the Chinese market and the Western market. As for the latter, it is also a fun way to show foreigners what baijiu is”.

To integrate baijiu into a cocktails and make it taste nice has long been thought of as an almost impossible task, but Noreiks succeeds in his creation of a baijiu cocktail that isn’t all that bad.

And he’s not the only one. el Coctel have taken a new spin on the signature cocktail the ‘Shanghai’ with a well shaken version of the drink, adding flavours of orange and lime juice, grenadine syrup, sugar and sambuca to the mix (RMB 80). At the beginning it tastes sweet, but then the strong aftertaste takes prescience, leaving that distinctive warming feeling that baijiu drinkers are familiar with as it runs down your throat. It works well, and the sweetness at the beginning detracts from drawing attention to the intense scent that often puts people off drinking baijiu in the first place.

When asked what other flavours would mix well with baijiu should you wish to make infusions of your own, Japanese bar manager (Harada Munenori) suggested similar strong tastes, such as wasabi or ginger ale because of their “strong smell and intense flavour”.

Another bar that has recently seen baijiu creatives at work in creating a dipsomaniac’s delight is cocktail favourite at Sinan Mansions, The Alchemist. Yao Lu, bar manager, kindly agreed to “play with a bottle of baijiu” and made a Chinese version of malty drink ‘The Brave’, (RMB 50), the innovative cocktail first created by renowned mixologist Bobby Heugel from Anvil Bar & Refuge in Texas, USA (www.anvilhouston.com), which is rated by GQ magazine as one of the 25 best cocktail bars in America. Inspired by Heugel, The Alchemist, showcased their version of ‘The Brave’ at Shanghai Cocktail Week last month, including the cocktail in a special menu alongside some new twists on other contemporary classics.

Baijiu is a “mysterious drink [here, which] everybody has heard about, but never tried”, says Yao Lu. “But we’re trying to change that.” To make ‘The Brave’, Lu uses ten year old Talisker whisky, baijiu, Grand Marnier liqueur and Cardamaro. These ingredients are all poured into a large wine glass without ice and swirled until mixed. A couple of sprays of Angostura bitter, a flamed orange zest and it’s ready. Lu manages to rid the intense smell of baijiu in his creation, but its strong taste can’t be diminished even with the addition of single malt whisky.

It takes time to get used to any new fad. Japanese sake or soju were taken as weird and mysterious when they were first introduced to the beverages market, and today, you can’t even imagine sitting down to a dinner of teppanyaki without one of these liquors. Only last year, British liquor giant Diageo became the largest shareholder in Chinese baijiu brand Shui Jing Fang, a step which could mark the expansion of baijiu’s presence abroad. “Diageo could probably give potential to [baijiu], especially in foreign markets”, agrees Yao Lu. And so despite the more complex, strong and intense flavours of baijiu, Le Sheng’s, el Coctel’s and The Alchemist’s efforts might spell the beginning of a baijiu breakthrough across the mainland.

Le Sheng. 322 Anfu Lu, near Wukang Lu. Tel: 5406 6011

el Coctel. Floor 2, 47 Yongfu Lu, near Fuxing Xi Lu. Tel: 6433 6511, Web: www.elwilly.com.cn 

The Alchemist. Block 32, 45 Sinan Lu, near Fuxing Zhong Lu. Tel: 6426 0660, Web: www.alchemist-bar.com