Kinmen Kaoliang 38° Baijiu

Kinmen Kaoliang is Taiwan's best-selling spirit and the island's defining baijiu, made on the Kinmen Islands, just two kilometers off the coast of Xiamen in Fujian. Its story starts in the Chinese Civil War, when Nationalist general Hu Lien encouraged Kinmen's farmers to grow sorghum, kaoliang in Mandarin, and distill it into liquor that could be traded for rice and other provisions. That trade became the backbone of the island's economy and culture. Kaoliang is a light-aroma style of baijiu, cleaner and less pungent than the strong-aroma baijius of Sichuan, and Kinmen's standard bottlings come at 58% and 38% ABV; this is the 38°, the softer, more approachable strength. Kinmen Kaoliang Liquor runs two plants: the modern Jinning plant, which ferments and ages in stainless steel for consistency, and the traditional Jincheng plant, which uses red-brick fermentation chambers and ages some spirit in clay jars for years, and the company has turned former Civil War military tunnels into cool, humid aging cellars. Across Taiwan, more than 45,000 liters are drunk every day. Serve it chilled in small cups for toasting, or with rich, spicy food like Sichuan dishes or hot pot.

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