The pre-Qin period was the peak of the formation and development of wine culture. The extensive planting of rice, hemp, rice, wheat and other crops has provided sufficient raw materials for brewing and promoted the progress of brewing technology. Fermentation techniques such as wine tiller and koji were formed in the pre-Qin period. The maturity of brewing technology has spawned a variety of wines with different flavors, which makes people prefer to drink. In the long-term drinking, wine has been applied to etiquette, political system and rural folk customs, forming a unique Chinese wine culture, which exudes a refreshing aroma in the long river of history.
Wine culture has been circulating for thousands of years.
The Legend and Exploration of Wine
When did the myth and legend wine originate? The first legend is "wine-making in different places", because the story of "wine-making in different places" indirectly gave birth to the "wine administration" in the Western Zhou Dynasty. According to legend, Yidi was a female official in Wang Dayu Palace in summer. One day, when she had nothing to do after work, she began to make some strange liquids. After repeated attempts, she finally brewed wine. Yidi presented the wine to Dayu for tasting. Dayu thinks this wine is mellow and memorable, and it is good wine. But Dayu felt a little drunk after drinking three rounds, so he thought that drinking too much would confuse sober people and make them regret it afterwards, so he alienated Yidi and stopped drinking.
Although this story is a myth and legend, it has always been taken as an example by later generations, comparing the wisdom of Dayu with the absurdity of Jie Li, highlighting the harm of alcoholism, so that the monarch of later generations will not mistake the country and the people because of alcoholism. Duke Zhou's "wine policy" was also inspired by the story of "Yidi brewing wine", so he promulgated "wine and wine", prohibiting excessive drinking, advocating moderate drinking and prohibiting excessive drinking. It can be seen that this myth and legend about wine is really energetic and will be remembered by future generations forever.
The second legend is called "Du Kang Brewing". Du Kang put the unfinished rice in the empty mulberry. A few days later, he opened it and saw that it was a clear liquid with a strong aroma. It was delicious, so he got inspiration from it and brewed wine through constant experiments.
The time when Du Kang lived has been recorded in history, so people are more willing to believe that Du Kang made the wine. Later, there was a beautiful sentence like "How to relieve anxiety, only Du Kang". Du Kang is directly regarded as synonymous with wine, which shows Du Kang's position in people's minds.
Du Kang Brewing
Scientific Exploration Although there are many legends about wine, China people who advocate science have not given up exploring the true origin of wine. According to historical records, people in Xia Dynasty liked drinking and often stayed up all night. Therefore, it is concluded that wine was first produced in Xia Dynasty, but it was soon overturned by an archaeological excavation. Archaeologists found grain raw materials and wine containers for wine making in Dawenkou site more than 5,000 years ago, which fully proved that our ancestors had been making wine and drinking in ancient times. Maybe on a bonfire night, they all raised their glasses, sang and danced with everyone, and then got drunk.
Dawenkou culture pottery wine vessel
Through beautiful myths and legends and real archaeological exploration, people finally uncovered the origin of wine, but at that time, wine was just a simple drink without the connotation of wine culture. China discovered wine and wine culture at the same time in the pre-Qin period. At that time, with the development of agriculture and the planting of various crops, the raw materials and techniques of wine-making also kept pace with the times, thus giving birth to wine culture.
Agricultural Development and Brewing Technology in Pre-Qin Period
The pre-Qin period, rich in brewing materials, is a great era of various civilizations of the Chinese nation, including the most important agricultural civilization. The first crops in China were only millet and rice. From the Xia and Shang Dynasties to the Zhou Dynasty, after hundreds of years of efforts by countless farmers, millet, millet, wheat, rice and hemp, commonly known as "five grains", were finally planted, which are also indispensable foods on people's tables today. Although these crops are not rich in variety compared with later generations, they are definitely enough to make wine. Every household in the Zhou Dynasty used grain to make wine, and there were countless grains needed for making wine every year. Fortunately, agriculture was quite developed at that time, which provided a steady stream of crops for people to make wine.
Traditional grain
Unique Brewing Technology People summed up their experience in the long-term brewing process and gradually formed a set of effective brewing methods, which were called "Qu" and "Tiller" by the ancients. "Tillers" are grains with long buds. This kind of grain contains a substance called glucoamylase, which can convert starch into glucose through hydrolysis reaction. This method was originally used to make maltose, and later used in the production of wine to make a sweet wine called Miao. However, because people's mastery of "tillering" is not mature enough, the "seedlings" made are difficult to drink.
Compared with the short-lived "land to the tiller", "Qu" has been circulated for thousands of years, and "Jiuqu" has always been an indispensable part in the brewing process. The invention of Qu embodies the wisdom of China people. "Qu" is composed of a variety of microorganisms, which has strong alcoholization ability and saccharification ability, and can directly convert grain into wine through chemical changes in a short time. Modern people call it "double fermentation". Since its birth, koji technology has undergone numerous improvements and processing. No matter how the wine changes in later generations, koji is always an indispensable and important link in the brewing process.
brewer's yeast
According to the maturity of brewing technology, there are five kinds of wines that are often drunk, namely Pan Qi, Yongqi, Laoqi, Angqi and Tiqi. These wines from the initial turbidity to the later clarity witnessed the continuous progress of winemakers' technology and the continuous maturity of winemaking technology. In addition to these five kinds of wine, there is also "Beijing wine" brewed with black millet, which is a pure grain wine. Because black millet was very precious at that time, Jing wine could only be drunk by nobles.
The plum wine that ordinary people often drink is called "pulp", with a little alcohol content, which is actually equivalent to a sour plum-flavored drink. They also use apricot, peach and plum kernels to make wine, which has the effect of strengthening the body.
Folk drinking
The Development of Wine Culture in Pre-Qin Period
With the maturity of brewing technology and technology, more people like to drink. From dignitaries to ordinary people, drinking is the first pleasure in life. However, in the eyes of many people of insight, drinking has become a hidden danger.
At the beginning of the Zhou Dynasty, Duke Zhou, who assisted Zhou Chengwang, summed up the lessons of the demise of the Shang Dynasty, one of which was alcoholism. Duke of Zhou also got a warning from the myth of "Dayu alienated Yi Di and wine" and realized the harm of excessive drinking. In order to prevent the Zhou Dynasty from repeating the same mistakes, the Duke of Zhou promulgated the Law on Drinking, which severely punished people who were drunk and crazy and forced them to give up drinking. Even a barren nobleman can't break the law. However, this drinking order is not absolute. Duke Zhou also stipulated that people could drink alcohol during ancestor worship, weddings, funerals and various major festivals. After the introduction of this regulation, everyone drinks in an orderly manner, and the society presents a scene of "harmonious political style".
Under the rule of an efficient government, people live in harmony.
Drinking etiquette on important occasions The Chinese nation is a country of etiquette, and drinking etiquette is of course the most important, especially in rural areas, which reflects a kind of etiquette and hierarchical order. In the rural drinking ceremony, the younger generation should propose a toast to the elders to show respect for the elderly and order. After the rural drinking ceremony, the elders should leave first, and then the younger generation should leave in turn to bid farewell to the elders.
The rural drinking ceremony not only means expressing the order of respecting the old and loving the young, but also has the function of increasing the feelings between neighbors and harmonious villages. A glass of wine in the rural drinking ceremony also represents the rural culture of China for thousands of years.
There is a cloud in the Book of Songs about Mang: For Mang, it is silk traded by cloth. When robbers came to trade silk, they came to me. This is about the marriage custom in the pre-Qin period. The man went to the woman's house to give gifts and propose marriage. If both parties agree, then the wedding can be held. The ancients called it a "wedding banquet". There is a custom of "tying the knot" at the wedding, that is, dividing a gourd into two halves, and each husband and wife will drink the wine in their own gourd, and then put the separated gourds together, which means that the husband and wife will live and die together in the future. Later, people also called this drinking method "Acacia wine".
Albizia julibrissin wine
Wine culture in entertainment activities The entertainment activities in the pre-Qin period were not as boring as people thought. There were many recreational activities in ancient times, and many of these activities were inseparable from entertainment with wine. The first is the order of drinking, which is also commonly known as "drinking and guessing boxing". This kind of activity is mainly carried out by "atmosphere group", but in the Western Zhou Dynasty, the order of drinking was composed of one person and then another, which was more literary and artistic. Once someone can't catch up with other people's poems because of insufficient knowledge reserves, they will be fined. Seemingly lively activities will also test people's intelligence and IQ. I have to say, the ancients were the best at playing.
One of the great pleasures of life
There is also an activity called "swallowing and shooting". The rules are simple. At the climax of the banquet, everyone took turns to take part in archery. Those who shoot the most can go back to their seats to drink, and those who are not good at archery are punished for standing and drinking. This didn't mean to humiliate anyone, just to make the party more interesting.
In order to increase the atmosphere of the banquet, people invented the "throwing pot". Everyone threw an arrow dedicated to throwing the pot into the pot, and the person who threw the least still had to stand and drink. This method is fair, because archery doesn't mean the skill of throwing pots is superb, so many people don't throw too much, and everyone stands together and drinks, which makes the atmosphere more active. Later, there was no punishment for drinking. Everyone drinks while throwing pots, and sometimes people who are as drunk as a fiddler come to play pot throwing games, which makes people laugh.
Pot-throwing game (played at banquets in ancient times, the outcome was decided by the number of arrows thrown into distant pots)
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China's wine culture has a long history. It originated from oral myths and legends and on-site archaeological excavations. This is a delicious drink that ancient people drank. The developed agriculture in the pre-Qin period made the brewing technology have a habitat, and the microbial brewing technology in the "compound fermentation method" which was born from it still affects the brewing industry and has become a microcosm of China's wine culture for thousands of years.
Wine culture is gradually formed in the maturity of brewing technology and people's love, which is used to carry forward the virtues of respecting the elderly and loving the young in rural areas, become a catalyst for displaying major festivals and entertainment activities, and reflect the simple customs and spiritual outlook of the ancients everywhere. Today, wine culture has long been integrated into the long river of China culture. It is not only a simple drink, but also a spiritual carrier that affects people's daily life.
References: The Book of Rites and The Book of Songs