National wine culture has a long history, and there are nearly a thousand varieties of wine. Xifeng wine is a wonder among wines. Xifeng wine has a long history. According to preliminary research, it began in the Zhou and Qin Dynasties and flourished in the Tang and Song Dynasties. It has a history of more than 2,700 years. As far back as the early Western Zhou Dynasty, the area in the middle reaches of the Yongshui River was shady with willow trees, the fields were flat, the water rippled, and the scenery was beautiful, so this place was called Liulin. During the Jiang and Tang Dynasties, Liulin connected Qinlong to the west, Bashu to the south, and Chang'an to the east. It was an important transportation fortress in the central and western parts of Guanxi. It had post stations, guest shops, and warehouses where merchants gathered. It was named Liulinpu. It was a must on the ancient Silk Road. The ancient road and the ancient market town. Since the Han Dynasty, there have been wine-making workshops. By the Tang and Song Dynasties, the wine-making industry has begun to take shape. Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, wine-making workshops have developed rapidly. By the third year of Xuantong in the Qing Dynasty (1911), there were 27 wine-making workshops in Liulin Town alone, which is quite large. It accounts for more than one-third of the total number of breweries in Fengxiang County.
“A land of fine wine must have a famous spring.” The reason why the winemaking industry in Liulin Town has been prosperous and prosperous in ancient and modern times is due to the excellent local water quality and soil quality, which are suitable for winemaking. According to "Historical Records. Qin Benji", there is a sacred spring in Liulin, 18 miles west of Yongcheng, the capital of Qin, with sweet water and gushes of water, hence the name "Jade Spring". Whenever the people encountered illness, they would drink the water from the Jade Spring, and the illness would be cured. The Liulin wine brewed from this spring water was mellow and elegant, sweet and refreshing. It was already known as a top-notch wine at that time, and was together with the horses of the Qin State. It is called the "National Treasure of Qin". There are five springs in Yongshan Mountain to the west of Liulin Town, which is the source of the Yongshui River. Its source flows from the northern foot of Yongshan Mountain to the south through Liulin Town to the southeast and joins the Weishui River. Its drainage basin spreads out in a fan shape, and the underground water source Rich, sweet and mellow water quality, fresh and fragrant, suitable for brewing and making tea. It has the miraculous effect of storing washed vegetables for seven days without spoiling. The water quality was determined by laboratory tests to be of the bicarbonate calcium type. Using it as brewing water is very conducive to koji enzyme saccharification; in addition, the local soil belongs to the loess soil type [Tulu] soil, which is suitable for making fermentation tanks and used as pit mud for coating the walls of the kiln. Accelerate biochemical reactions during the brewing process and promote the formation of fatty acids. These are all indispensable natural geographical conditions for brewing Xifeng wine.
Fengxiang, known as Yongzhou in ancient times, is the birthplace of Zhou Dynasty and the area where Qin Dynasty established its hegemony. It is an area where agriculture developed earlier in ancient times. Human beings have been engaged in agricultural activities here for five to six thousand years. It is one of the important birthplaces of the ancient Chinese culture in the Yellow River Basin. It is said that in the Zhou Dynasty, "phoenixes gathered in Qishan and flew over the Yong Mountains"; in the Spring and Autumn Period, Nong Yu, the beloved daughter of Duke Mu of Qin, liked to play the flute, which attracted Xiao Shi, a hermit from Huashan who was good at playing the flute. The phoenix flew away. In the second year of Emperor Xiaozong's reign (757) of the Tang Dynasty, Yongzhou was renamed Fengxiang with this intention. 19 princes of the pre-Qin Dynasty established their capitals here, which lasted for 294 years. Historically, it was the political, economic and cultural center of central and western Guanxi. Since the Qin Dynasty established its capital, every dynasty has been governed by states, counties, prefectures, and roads, so it is also known as the "Western Prefecture". This place has been rich in fine wine since ancient times, especially the wine brewed in Liulin Town, west of Fengxiang County, is the best. In the Han Dynasty, the brewing industry in Yongcheng developed faster. In the Han Dynasty, from Emperor Gaozu to Emperor Wenjing, the activities of worshiping Wu [Tian Temple] were held in Yongdi 19 times. "A gathering of hundreds of rites cannot be done without wine." A huge amount of alcohol was consumed. From the palace to the dignitaries, they "drank fine wine day and night"; In folk weddings and funerals, as well as entertaining guests and giving gifts, wine is always used. The output of wine and the wine-making technology were increasing day by day, and folk koji-making technology also made great progress. The wine-making equipment was gradually improved, and the brewing of distilled wine using Wenliang as raw materials and barley and peas as koji began. So the shochu began. When it came out, this kind of liquor was the early predecessor of Xifeng liquor. At that time, the liquor produced by Fengxiang was already quite famous.
In the early Tang Dynasty, there were more wine-making workshops in Fengxiang City, and the wine industry in market towns such as Liulin and Chencun was particularly prosperous. In the ninth year of Wude (618), Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty, the "Changshun Zhen" workshop in Fengxiang City was established, becoming the earliest private private brewing in Shaanxi. During the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty, Liulin Liquor was praised as "the fragrance spreads ten miles away when opened, and the fragrance spreads in three houses next door". For centuries, it has been famous for its exquisite brewing skills and unique style. It has been listed as a treasure by royal families of all dynasties with its reputation as "good spring wine" and "clear and fragrant wine". It is also known as a "magnificent and wonderful flower" among the famous historical wines of the Chinese nation. ". In modern times, it was named "Xifeng Wine". Today, there are still popular stories among the people about "East Lake Willow, Xifeng Wine, and Women's Hands" (referring to the fact that many folk handicrafts are made by women).
There are different opinions on when Xifeng wine was brewed. According to "Fengxiang County Wine Industry Chronicle": In the 20th century BC, the Gan family, a descendant of the Tian family in Yongzhou, began to brew rice wine and liquor.
The famous medical book "Suwen. Treatise on Soup, Brewing and Liquor" contains a conversation between the emperor and Qibo about the use of wine for medical treatment. After the immigrants of the Zhou Dynasty moved to Qi (Mountain) Yong (Yi), the old nomads turned to agricultural production. At that time, the level of agricultural production in Yongdi greatly exceeded that of the vassal states in the East that were mainly based on agriculture. The grain they produced was more than self-sufficient and was used for wine making. The development of the industry provided a solid material foundation, and other handicraft workshops, mainly in the wine industry, quickly emerged and began to produce the original and ancient brewing wine-鬯 (chang4) and Li (li3). Among the Western Zhou bronzes unearthed in Fengxiang County, there are a large number of drinking utensils, such as wine vessels, ? (lei3), [upper grain and lower vessels] (he2), as well as jues for heating wine and drinking glasses. , gourds, etc., as well as more exquisite pottery and jade wine utensils. The inscription on the Dameng Ding contains the record of "Xi (granted) to you, a piece of brine", and there is also a poem from the Zhou Dynasty that "makes wine for wine, steams it for (bi4) to rent a concubine (bi3)". In the Fengxiang "Qin Gong No. 1" tomb excavated in 1986, many drinking utensils from the Spring and Autumn Period were also discovered. From the above historical facts, it can be seen that during the Spring and Autumn Period, the brewing industry in Yongdi had already taken shape. In the Qin Dynasty, artificial wine and drinking were more common, and the drinking customs were also very particular. There is a record in "Wine Book": "Dong Mugong of Qin attacked Jinji River, and the general worked hard to brew the mash vertebrae for a minute. Uncle Qian persuaded him and said: 'Even if you throw a meter into the river, it will make wine.' So he threw it into the river, and the three armies were all This is the historical record of the story of Duke Mu of Qin "throwing wine into the river to work for his troops" after the victory of the Qin, Jin and Han Yuan wars. According to "Historical Records. Qin Benji": "Qin Mugong died of a good horse, and the barbarians captured and ate more than 300 of them. The officials wanted to punish them, and the Duke said: 'A gentleman does not harm others with animals. I heard that "Eating horse meat without drinking alcohol will hurt people." Three hundred people were given wine and pardoned. When they heard that Qin was attacking Jin, they all fought to the north to repay the virtue of eating horses." This is a historical allusion in the Spring and Autumn Period when Qin Mugong gave wine to detoxify the "savages" who stole horses. Yu Xin, a native of Jiangzhou in the Northern Zhou Dynasty, also reflected this matter in his article "Praise to Duke Mu of Qin for Drinking and Stealing Horses": "When a horse is stolen, Qin will not be angry. It will drink the wine first, but will be afraid of hurting others. If the neighboring soldiers attack the country, the brave invaders will invade Qin. So the big thief also became a hero. "The wine used at that time was the ancient wine produced in Yongdi, which according to research is closely related to Xifeng wine.
According to "Tang Huiyao": In the third year of Yifeng of Tang Dynasty (678), Pei Xingjian, the minister of the Ministry of official affairs, escorted Balus, the son of Persia, on his way back to his country along the Silk Road. I found a bee and a butterfly lying on the ground beside the road. I felt strange and ordered the stationed county guard to find out the cause. When the county guard made inquiries along the way and reached Liulinpu, he learned that a brewery had just produced a jar of aged wine from the underground. It was extremely mellow. It turned out that the smell of this wine was carried by the wind to the pavilion five miles southeast of Liulin Town. The bees and butterflies in this area were all too drunk to dance after hearing it, and they lay down one after another. The county guard immediately reported the truth to Pei Gong and sent the old wine to Pei Gong. When the waiter smelled the mellow smell of wine, he suddenly felt tired and rejuvenated. He impromptuly recited a poem: "Send me off to the pavilion. The bees are drunk and the butterflies do not dance. Three Yangs open up the country. Beautiful willow forest wine." When Pei Gong returned to the court, he ordered the county guard to transport the wine back to Chang'an and present it to Emperor Wenzong. Emperor Wenzong praised it. Since then, Liulin wine has been listed as a tribute with the reputation of "good spring wine, green and mellow". The wine was sold as far away as the Central Plains and to counties in the Western Regions along the Silk Road. Du Fu, the great poet of the Tang Dynasty, tasted the sweet flavor of this wine in Fengxiang during the "Anshi Rebellion", and left a poem: "The Han Dynasty was revived at the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty, and I have been addicted to drinking all my life." It is said that when Emperor Zhaozong of the Song Dynasty entertained his courtiers at a banquet in Fengxiang, he fished for a meal and drank freely from Liulin wine. Li Maozhen and other courtiers got this mellow and sweet wine treasure, and drank it from a huge cup. They lingered and couldn't help themselves.
In the early Song Dynasty, there were many brewing workshops in Fengxiang City, and there were many brewers in the countryside. They were taxed according to the fixed age, and the tax profits were relatively large. The remaining profits collected will be used to support side expenses. During the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty, official sales of music were implemented, which inhibited the development of the wine industry. The officials lost their profits and the people were inconvenienced. In the seventh year of Jiayou's reign in the Northern Song Dynasty (1062), when Su Dongpo was appointed as the signing judge of Fengxiang Mansion, he paid great attention to the development of Fengxiang liquor industry. He pointed out in the "Notary Affairs Book of Shanghan and Wei Dynasties" that Fengxiang was one of the famous counties in the country. As a place that produces Shaanxi's famous wines, if the development of the wine industry is restricted, the tax source will be lost, which will be a huge loss to the country's finances. The imperial court adopted his suggestion and allowed folk to make koji and make wine, and the official tax was collected, so Fengxiang's wine industry flourished. Liquor tax also became an important source of government revenue at that time.
During Su Dongpo's tenure in Fengxiang, he diverted water from Fengxiang spring, moved bamboos to create flowers, planted willows and lotuses, added pavilions and pavilions, built terraces and pavilions, repaired East Lake, and built the famous "Happy Rain Pavilion". On the day of its completion, friends were invited to celebrate and celebrate. He drank wine in the pavilion and drank the fine wine from Liulin, and wrote the world-famous poem "The Story of Xiyu Pavilion". Su Dongpo also praised it with the beautiful line "The flowers are blooming, the wine is beautiful, and you are not drunk, come and see Leng Cuiwei on the south side" in the poem "Ren Yin Chongjiu, without predicting the meeting, I visited the monk pavilion of Pumen Temple alone, with a cup". Liulin wine still has ink marks on East Lake, and its reputation is growing day by day, so it is called "Fengxiang Laoquan".
In the Ming Dynasty, Fengxiang had “burning shops all over the place and the city was filled with fragrance”, and the brewing industry boomed. There were 48 brewing workshops in Liulin Town alone. Passers-by often "stop their cars when they know the smell, dismount when they smell the fragrance" and enjoy tasting Liulin's fine wine.
During the Xianfeng and Tongzhi years of the Qing Dynasty, wine-making workshops sprung up in Fengxiang County, Liulin Town and other places.
In the second year of Xuantong of the Qing Dynasty (1910), Xifeng Wine represented famous products in the Nanyang Industry Export Competition and won the silver medal.
In the fourth year of the Republic of China (1915), Xifeng Wine won the gold medal at the "Panama-Pacific Exposition" held in San Francisco, USA, and became famous. In the 18th year of the Republic of China (1929), the Xifeng wine produced by Xingshengde Workshop won the second prize at the China Domestic Products Exhibition held in Shanghai. After that, Xifeng Wine became famous all over the world and was praised both at home and abroad.
In 1952 after liberation, Xifeng Liquor was called one of the four famous liquors (Mao, Lu, Feng and Fen) in the country at the first national wine appraisal meeting. After that, Xifeng Wine won many awards in various world and domestic competitions and became famous at home and abroad.
Xifeng wine is one of my country's ancient historical wines. It is a unique wine garden cultivated by the working people of Xifu with their wisdom and hard work over a long period of time. In the production practice and historical development of generations, through the accumulation of experience, summary and improvement, a complete set of brewing technology history, scientific and technological development history and wine culture history has been formed, which occupies an important position in the forest of Chinese fine wines. This is the Xifu people’s appreciation of the motherland’s culture. His significant contribution has added a brilliant chapter to the treasure house of wine culture of the Chinese nation.