On December 15, an appointment ceremony of technical expert for the Organic Hongyingzi Sorghum Project of Jindong Group was held at the Zhenjiu Distillery in Guizhou. Wu Xiangdong, Chairman of Jindong Group, attended the ceremony and appointed Professor Tu Youneng, known as “Father of Hongyingzi Sorghum” as an expert for the Organic Sorghum Project of Jindong Group. The expert received an appointment letter on the ceremony.

Expert Engaged to Support Organic Sorghum Project

Professor Tu Youneng is the Chairman of Guizhou Hongyingzi Agricultural Technology Development Co., Ltd. He has been engaged in sorghum genetic breeding for thirty-four years. He has selected seeds for breeding of a Hongyingzi variety of glutinous sorghum, which is an important raw material for Zhenjiu.

The Hongyingzi glutinous sorghum grows for about 131 days. The tannin content accounts for more than 1.5%, the total starch content accounts for more than 65%, and the amylopectin content accounts for more than 88%. Good glutinousness, thick seed coat, resistance to cooking, and high quality makes it a suitable material for brewing Zhenjiu “12987”. With seeds selected and bred by Tu Youneng’s team, the average yield of Hongyingzi glutinous sorghum per mu has increased from 75 kilograms to nearly 300 kilograms, which is a great contribution to the Maotai-flavour liquor industry.

After the appointment ceremony, Professor Tu, citing sorghum samples, introduced the sensory characteristics of the Hongyingzi variety to the technical brewing team of Zhenjiu, and highly appraised and affirmed the strict control of raw material quality by Zhenjiu. His team will continue to provide technical support for the sorghum quality control system as Zhenjiu grows bigger and stronger.

“No. 1 Workshop” Guarantees High Quality of Zhenjiu

As we all know, high-quality glutinous sorghum used for wine making is an indispensable raw material for Maotai-flavour liquor. Therefore, the base of Guizhou glutinous sorghum for wine making is also known as the “No.1 Workshop” of Maotai-flavour liquor.Good Maotai-flavour liquor relies not only on a good brewing process but also on “planting” of good raw materials.

The unique brewing technology of Maotai-flavour liquor requires a percentage of sorghum amylopectin at more than 88% of the total starch, and at the same time, the grains must be characterized by thick seed coat, small but firm nature, resistance to cooking, and resistance to stirring and roughen so as to meet the process requirement of the Maotai-flavour liquor “12987”; on the other hand, to make good Maotai-flavour liquor, the tannin content of sorghum as a raw material must be between 1.5% and 2.0%, and it will be finally fermented to give the liquor a unique fragrance.

According to Zhu Guojun, General Manager of Zhenjiu Liquor Co., Ltd., Zhenjiu has historically built high-standard sorghum bases in various parts of Guizhou under the “base + association + cooperative” model and with the leadership of Maotai Group. These sorghum bases are home to non-GMO Zunyi local traditional varieties of glutinous sorghum. Some sorghum bases and their Hongyingzi glutinous sorghum are applying for organic certification.

Historically, Zhenjiu Distillery has steadily purchased sorghum used for wine making. It protects the interests of liquor sorghum growers and helps them increase their income and become rich.