Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Jun 16:13:919044.
doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.919044. eCollection 2022.

Chinese Baijiu: The Perfect Works of Microorganisms

Wenying Tu  1 , Xiaonian Cao  2   3 , Jie Cheng  1 , Lijiao Li  1 , Ting Zhang  1 , Qian Wu  1 , Peng Xiang  1 , Caihong Shen  2   3 , Qiang Li  1   4
Affiliations
Review

Chinese Baijiu: The Perfect Works of Microorganisms

Wenying Tu et al. Front Microbiol. .

Abstract

Chinese Baijiu is one of the famous distilled liquor series with unique flavors in the world. Under the open environment, Chinese Baijiu was produced by two solid-state fermentation processes: jiuqu making and baijiu making. Chinese Baijiu can be divided into different types according to the production area, production process, starter type, and product flavor. Chinese Baijiu contains rich flavor components, such as esters and organic acids. The formation of these flavor substances is inseparable from the metabolism and interaction of different microorganisms, and thus, microorganisms play a leading role in the fermentation process of Chinese Baijiu. Bacteria, yeasts, and molds are the microorganisms involved in the brewing process of Chinese Baijiu, and they originate from various sources, such as the production environment, production workers, and jiuqu. This article reviews the typical flavor substances of different types of Chinese Baijiu, the types of microorganisms involved in the brewing process, and their functions. Methods that use microbial technology to enhance the flavor of baijiu, and for detecting flavor substances in baijiu were also introduced. This review systematically summarizes the role and application of Chinese Baijiu flavor components and microorganisms in baijiu brewing and provides data support for understanding Chinese Baijiu and further improving its quality.

Keywords: Chinese Baijiu; fermentation; flavor substances; jiuqu; microorganisms.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

XC, CS, and QL were employed by Luzhou Laojiao Co., Ltd. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Relationships of 12 flavored baijiu types in China.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
The production process of the three kinds of jiuqu.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bokulich N. A., Bamforth C. W., Mills D. A. (2012). A review of molecular methods for microbial community profiling of beer and wine. J. Am. Soc. Brew. Chem. 70 150–162.
    1. Cai W. C., Xue Y. A., Wang Y. R., Wang W. P., Shu N., Zhao H. J., et al. (2021). The fungal communities and flavor profiles in different types of high-temperature Daqu as revealed by high-throughput sequencing and electronic senses. Front. Microbiol. 12:784651. 10.3389/fmicb.2021.784651 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cai X. M., Shen Y., Chen M. Y., Zhong M. G., Luo A. (2019). Characterisation of volatile compounds in Maotai flavour liquor during fermentation and distillation. J. Inst. Brew. 125 453–463.
    1. Calasso M., Ercolini D., Mancini L., Stellato G., Minervini F., Cagno R. D., et al. (2016). Relationships among house, rind and core microbiotas during manufacture of traditional Italian cheeses at the same dairy plant. Food Microbiol. 54 115–126.
    1. Chen B., Wu Q., Xu Y. (2014). Filamentous fungal diversity and community structure associated with the solid state fermentation of Chinese Maotai-flavor liquor. Int. J. Food Microbiol. 179 80–84. 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2014.03.011 - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources