Shang Is a Unique New Hybrid Spirit Combining Whiskey and Baijiu
We cover a lot of spirits that are unique, singular, and sometimes even a first in a given category, but this new partnership between Chinese and American spirits companies is one of the most distinctive we’ve tried in a while. Shāng is a baijiu that was produced in China and then brought to Kentucky to be aged and blended with American whiskey, resulting in a spirit that is truly unlike anything else you’ve tasted before.
The backstory and process of this new spirit require some explanation. The two expressions, Shāng Dàn Yǎ and Shāng East + West Kentucky Blend, were created as a collaboration between Guìzhōu Guótái Shùzhì Liquor Group, Maritine Brands, True Essence Foods, The Blending House, and Whiskey House of Kentucky. Shāng starts out as baijiu, a very popular Chinese spirit that is distilled from red sorghum sourced from the Chìshuǐ River basin. Specifically, this is jiángxiāng baijiu, a designation referring to its particular aroma and flavor, which is said to be very savory. The spirit was fermented in earthen pits and distilled, a process that took a year across eight fermentations and seven distillations. Next it was aged in traditional clay pots for a minimum of three years. Unlike aging in a barrel, this does not add flavor; instead it’s about marrying and mellowing the spirit. Finally, it was redistilled in a copper pot still to create a “whiskey base,” meaning it was distilled like a whiskey with the hearts of the distillation run making the final cut.
Next, Shāng was shipped to Kentucky where it was aged in new charred oak barrels, blended, and bottled by the Blending House. Whiskey House of Kentucky, a newer distillery that was set up to contract distill and produce its own products, distilled whiskey from red sorghum that went into the East + West expression. If this operation sounds a little bit like Bardstown Bourbon Company, that’s because three of the BBC founders launched this new venture. Recently, Whiskey House has faced the same troubles that have plagued much of the industry, announcing last month that it was reducing operations to 60 percent capacity and laying off about 30 percent of its staff.
“The unparalleled craft of dual-brewing and dual-aging defines the unique character of Shāng,” said Yán Kǎijìng, chairman of Guìzhōu Guótái Shùzhì Liquor Group, in a statement. “It embraces the classic Western liquid-state fermentation technique, integrates the millennia-old art of Chinese solid-state jiàngxiāng brewing, nurtured through slow aging in ceramic jars, and refined by maturation in American oak barrels.”
We got to sample both of the initial products, and they were truly interesting, if perhaps a bit stranger than the average whiskey drinker is probably used to. Shāng Dàn Yǎ (50 percent ABV) is the baijiu-cum-whiskey that was aged in American oak, and this immediately jumps out with a pungent nose that will be familiar to anyone who has tried this Chinese spirit before. That’s followed by notes of overripe fruit, dark chocolate, blue cheese, truffle salt, earth, grass, citrus, and a healthy dose of umami character. Shāng East + West Kentucky Blend (46 percent ABV), which incorporates the red sorghum whiskey into the mix, has a lot of sweetness going on as you sip. Think flavors like candy corn, butterscotch, cotton candy grapes, vanilla, oak, and cherries, and you get the picture.
Both Shāng Dàn Yǎ (SRP $65) and Shāng East + West Kentucky Blend (SRP $46) are available to preorder now from the brand’s website.
