Vinegar, the ancient Chinese character for "Qiang", also known as "acyl". "Zhou Li" has a record of "acyl substance", which can be confirmed that vinegar in China has existed in the Western Zhou Dynasty. Jinyang (now Taiyuan) is one of the birthplaces of my vinegar. It is said in history that there was a vinegar workshop in Jinyang in the 8th century BC, which spread all over urban and rural areas in the Spring and Autumn Period. To the Northern Wei Dynasty, Qi Min Yao Shu * * * described twenty-two methods of making vinegar, such as big vinegar and glutinous rice. Since the Tang and Song Dynasties, due to the progress and development of microorganisms and koji-making technology, there were Daqu, Xiaoqu and Hongqu in the Ming Dynasty. In Shanxi vinegar, Red Heart Daqu was used as a high-quality vinegar Daqu, which integrated Daqu, Xiaoqu, Hongqu and other beneficial microbial populations. The best-known vinegar maker should first promote Yiyuanqing, a Chinese time-honored brand, and it was said that Zhu Jihuan, the grandson of Ming Taizu, was named King of Ninghua and Yiyuanqing in history. In the first year of Qing Shunzhi (1644), Gengyang (now Qingxu) Chinese time-honored Meiheju changed sorghum Daqu smoked vinegar into mature vinegar, which highlighted the new vinegar aging process of "drying in summer and fishing for ice in winter", formed the unique taste of this brand of vinegar, and named the product "mature vinegar", which gained great fame and was called by later generations. As early as 1930s, the late famous microbiologist Mr. Fang Xinfang summarized and affirmed the technology of Shanxi mature vinegar in Meiheju, pointing out that "the fermentation temperature of Qingyuan vinegar is above 40℃, and its butyric acid bacteria and lactic acid bacteria will play a role, and the unique smell of Shanxi vinegar can also prove the role of bacteria other than acetic acid bacteria." The late famous microbiologist Mr. Chen Yaosheng clearly pointed out in various works that Qing Xu's Meiheju has experienced more than 300 years of ups and downs, and this valuable national heritage was inherited and carried forward by Shanxi Mature Vinegar Group.

The history and origin of vinegar

The history of human consumption of vinegar is very long, some people think it is about 10 thousand years. The written history of vinegar is at least 3,000 years, and it is the oldest condiment like salt. Therefore, just like tea culture and wine culture, vinegar is also a kind of culture.

Thousands of years ago, China was able to master the technology of brewing vinegar from grains. In the book "Zhou Li" written by Duke Zhou in A.D. 1058, there are records about brewing, and specialized vinegar brewing workshops have appeared in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. "Qi Min Yao Shu Zuo Qiang Fa", "Qiang, now vinegar". In ancient China, vinegar was called vinegar, anhydride, bitter wine or acyl, and the process of brewing vinegar was recorded in Qi Min Yao Shu in detail. After researching Taiyuan, historian Hao Shuhou thinks that in 479 BC, when Jinyang City was established, there were vinegar makers. Foreigners call Shanxi people "old Xi 'er", which is the homonym of ancient vinegar. Taking ancient vinegar as a synonym for Shanxi people can also reflect the early time and the large number of people brewing vinegar in history. Therefore, it can be said that Shanxi is the birthplace of vinegar, and vinegar brewing has a history of at least 2480 years.

During the Zhou Dynasty in the Spring and Autumn Period, vinegar workshops in Jinyang area had spread all over the urban and rural areas, among which the vinegar in Gengyang (now Qingxu) was the best. In the first year of Shunzhi in Qing Dynasty (1644), the "Meiheju" vinegar workshop in Gengyang combined with the characteristics of vinegar brewing technology at that time and created its own unique production technology. Because the whole production process takes a long time and the vinegar produced is as mellow as aged wine, people named the vinegar produced by "Meiheju" as aged vinegar, and "Meiheju" also developed into a prominent big firm. Until the 1930s, Mr. Feng Xinfang, the originator of microorganisms in China, wrote a book calling mature vinegar the best vinegar in China after a field trip to Qingxu on a donkey.

In the downtown area of Taiyuan, the steamed iron retort built in July 22 nd of Jiaqing is still preserved. Legend has it that "Yiyuanqing", an old brand, was established in the Ming Dynasty, and it was a workshop dedicated to brewing, grinding flour and making vinegar in the Wangfu of Zhu Jihuan, the grandson of Zhu Yuanzhang, the great ancestor of the Ming Dynasty. The vinegar brewed by Yiyuanqing is exquisite in ingredients, fine in preparation, sweet and sour in taste, and will not deteriorate for a long time. In addition to being eaten by the local government, King Ninghua regarded it as a treasure, and kept worshipping the imperial palace. By the time of the Republic of China, the vinegar of Yiyuanqing was still a good gift from dignitaries to relatives and friends, so-called "official vinegar", commonly known as "Ninghua House" vinegar. Until the eve of liberation, its products were still favored by elites and celebrities, such as Yan Xishan's "Eight Gao Qian" and famous Shanxi opera artists.

Shanxi vinegar has a long history, and Shanxi people are famous for being jealous. "Shangshu" recorded such a story: In order to hire a man named Fu Shuo to be his prime minister, Wu Ding gave a speech: "If you are a wine cellar, you will only be a tiller; If you make a soup, you will only be salt plum. " The plums mentioned here are sour plums, which were used as vinegar at that time. Yin Wuding's words mean: How outstanding your talents are-if you are making sweet wine, you are the key starter and tiller; If you are making soup, you are the essential salt and vinegar. It can be seen that as early as BC 12 century ago, Shanxi people not only had the habit of being jealous, but also regarded vinegar as a symbol of praising people's superb character and outstanding talent.

The etymology records: "vinegar, originally called' vinegar', is an acidic condiment." Vinegar is "a bitter wine, which is called acyl in the week and vinegar in the Chinese" (Textual Research on the Original Matter). In the Zhou dynasty, there was an official who was "an acyl person", and the acyl person was also vinegar. "Acne person" is an official who manages vinegar making. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, vinegar was still a relatively expensive condiment, and it was only widely produced in the Han Dynasty. There are also records of vinegar making in Sima Qian's Biography of Historical Records of Huo Zhi and Cui Yes's Four People's Moon Order. Therefore, the historian Professor Hao Shuhou concluded that there were vinegar makers at least before 497 BC, that is, before the establishment of Jinyang Ancient City.

Shanxi vinegar is brewed properly, so it is not only varied, but also exquisite in quality, and has become an indispensable condiment in people's lives in Shanxi. It is divided into aged vinegar, aged vinegar, common vinegar, double vinegar, special vinegar, famous special vinegar, flavored vinegar and so on. From the production process, there are smoked vinegar, yellow vinegar, reflux vinegar, cylinder sealing vinegar, pouring vinegar, etc. The main raw materials used are sorghum vinegar, corn vinegar, millet vinegar, persimmon vinegar, fruit vinegar, sweet potato vinegar, etc. According to the types of koji used, there are Daqu vinegar, fast koji vinegar, natural fermented vinegar and so on. It's really dazzling, with its own characteristics.

Why does vinegar play an important role in Shanxi people's life? Residents in Jinzhong (including Taiyuan) are used to eating pasta, which is seasoned with vinegar, refreshing and delicious, promoting appetite and helping digestion. According to literature records and clinical experience, vinegar also has a high value in medicine. Ancient medical books have such records: "Acetic acid is warm, appetizing and nourishing the liver, strengthening tendons and warming bones, sobering up and promoting digestion, lowering qi to ward off evil spirits, and relieving fish and crab scales to introduce various poisons. Those who are old and have a thick flavor and fragrance are good." In the fourth year of Qing Dynasty, Imperial Physician of Jingshi concentrated on famous doctors all over the country, and "Dingkundan" was made for the treatment of blood stasis of imperial concubines. More than 20 kinds of medicinal materials were used, many of which had to be processed with mature vinegar before use. In addition, people practice many wonderful uses of vinegar in their daily lives.

Because of its long history and profound cultural implications, Shanxi vinegar industry has become an industrial tourism project with unique characteristics in Shanxi. Shanxi Old Vinegar Group Company has completely changed the production environment of vinegar industry in the past, and established the "vinegar therapy garden", which has received nearly100000 visitors from home and abroad for sightseeing and recreation.