What are the differences between the new version of the national standard of Huangjiu and the old one?

The national standard of Huangjiu (GB/T13662) was formulated in 1992 and has been revised in 2000, 2008 and 2018. The new version of the national standard of Huangjiu which was released on September 17th, 2018, was officially implemented on April 1st, 2019. What are the differences between the new version of the national standard of Huangjiu and the old one? In this regard, we interviewed Zhou Jiandi, the senior engineer of the National Huangjiu Engineering Technology Center, and he analyzed the differences in detail.

The English name of [" was changed as "Huangjiu".

Zhou Jiandi said that the revision of the national standard of Huangjiu was based on the full consultation with major enterprises in the industry, the current industry development characteristics, consumption demand trends, the status quo of technological progress, and the full scientific demonstration by professors of well-known colleges and universities, experts of scientific research institutes, enterprise technicians and other professional personnel.

In the 2008 edition, [" was translated as Chinese Rice Wine. In Oxford Dictionary, [wine" refers to an alcoholic drink made from the juice of grapes that has been left to ferment, an alcohol drink made from plants or fruits other than grapes, or a dark red color. And [rice" refers to short, narrow white or brown grain grown on wet land in hot countries as food, or the plant that produces this grain. The original meaning of Chinese rice wine is "the fermented wine made from rice". However, it is difficult for many foreigners to understand. Thus, [" was transliterated as "Huangjiu" in the 2018 version. And there are precedents for this kind of translation method. For example, [" is transliterated as [Baijiu" and [" is transliterated as [sake". In addition, "beer", "brandy" and "whiskey" are transliterated as [", [", [" respectively. The revision of the English name not only scientifically reflects that Huangjiu, the quintessence of China, is unique to China, but also reflects our cultural confidence. In addition, it is more conducive to promote Huangjiu products in the international market. Thus, enterprises should adjust the English logo when reprint product labels.

The requirement that at least 50% of the original Huangjiu should reach the age marked on the label was cancelled.

Compared with the 2008 edition, the enzyme preparation is added into the saccharifying agent in the new edition. Enzyme preparation, as a safe and efficient catalyst, has been widely utilized in the food industry. On the premise of ensuring product quality, replacing part of wheat starter with enzyme preparation can reduce the cost, improve the utilization rate of raw materials and control the fermentation of Huangjiu in an automatic and precise way, which is conducive to the realization of large-scale brewing of Huangjiu.

The new edition has also changed the definition of wine age. The wine age marked on the sales package label is the weighted average age of all original Huangjiu. Compared with the 2008 edition, the requirement that at least 50% of the original Huangjiu should reach the age marked on the label was cancelled. The quality of Huangjiu (especially traditional Huangjiu) is closely related to the climate of the year in which it was brewed and the quality of raw materials. If the climate of that year is not good for brewing and the quality of raw materials is poor, the quality of the raw wine of that year must be worse than that of other years. Therefore, the cancellation of the requirement is more beneficial for enterprises to blend stable and high-quality Huangjiu products.

However, the new definition makes it more difficult to regulate the industry. The new definition gives enterprises more freedom to operate. However, if the regulation and self-discipline of the industry is insufficient, the phenomenon of the wine age deficiency will be more common.

In addition, the terms "original Huangjiu", "blending" and "inhibited fermentation" with their definitions were added in the new edition. The original Huangjiu refers to the brewed base wine stored in the container after being boiled or without any operation. The original Huangjiu is different from the blended products sold in the market. Because of the unique investment value, the original Huangjiu is quite popular in the market. The original Huangjiu was defined in the new national standard, which can regulate the development of the original Huangjiu market. What`s more, the terms "blending" and "inhibiting fermentation" with their definitions were also added in the new edition, which can provide legal basis for adding water after high-concentration mash fermentation to make Huangjiu with the low alcohol content and utilizing edible alcohol to inhibit the yeast fermentation to make sweet and semi-sweet Huangjiu. And the adding of terms with definitions is also conducive to the diversified development of Huangjiu products. However, the use of edible alcohol shall meet the requirements of relevant national laws and regulations.

Some physical and chemical indexes were modified: the alcohol content of light type Huangjiu was reduced further.

This modification of physical and chemical indexes is also one of the focuses of this revision. Compared with the former standard, according to the product type and grade, the amino acid nitrogen of Huangjiu was decreased by 0.04g/l ~ 0.20g/l, the solid index other than sugar was decreased by 2.5g/l ~ 9.0g/l, the upper limit of the total acid of non-rice Huangjiu was increased from 7.0g/l to 10.0g/l, and the alcohol content of light type Huangjiu was decreased from ≤ 8.0% to ≤ 6.0%.

Mr. Zhou Jiandi said that Shaoxing Huangjiu enterprises should develop corresponding new products and adjust the existing production process according to the adjustment of physical and chemical indexes. At the same time, because the new national standard of Huangjiu (GB/13662) has been revised and released, the national standard of Geographical Indication Product: Shaoxing Jiu (Shaoxing Huangjiu) (GB/T17946) shall be revised immediately, and the corresponding physical and chemical indexes shall be adjusted properly. In addition, due to the lag between manufacturing and marketing (Shaoxing Jiu needs to be stored for more than one year before being sold), enterprises should also pay attention to the revision trend in time and make preparations in advance.

It should be said that the revision, release and implementation of the national standard of Huangjiu conforms to the development direction of the industry, caters to the changes of market consumption demand, and has positive significance for promoting the technological progress of Huangjiu industry, standardizing the development of Huangjiu industry, and promoting the development of new products of Huangjiu.