Year: 2006
Sort: Traditional Handicraft
Area: Shanxi Province
Serial No.: Ⅷ-61
Declarer: Qingxu County, Shanxi Province

People from North China's Shanxi Province are best known for their love of vinegar. It is even said that vinegar is a must at their tables and a meal isn't complete without it. The vinegar produced in Shanxi, also called 'Shanxi Chengcu', is known in China as one of the four most famous kinds of vinegar, along with vinegar from Southwest China's Sichuan and East China's Zhejiang and Fujian provinces.

South of Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi, Qingxu County has been known as the production center of vinegar in Shanxi for centuries. In 1924, Qingxu vinegar won first prize at the Panama International Fair, and ever since Shanxi vinegar has gained a reputation both at home and abroad.

Starting from the Spring and Autumn period (770-476 BC), people in Qingxu learned to brew vinegar through fermentation. This tradition was passed down into the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC to 24 AD), when workshops specializing in producing vinegar emerged in Qingxu. The technique of brewing vinegar in Qingxu saw a breakthrough during the Northern Wei Dynasty (534-550 AD), which turned out to be helpful in shaping the unique taste of Qingxu vinegar. Its fully-fledged vinegar industry has earned Shanxi the reputation of the 'home of vinegar' in China.

Local sorghum is the major ingredient in Qingxu vinegar, and is supplemented by a variety of husks and chaffs. Mainly made from grain, Qingxu vinegar contains amino acids such as enzymes and lactic acid, needed by the human body. Brewed according to a strict series of standards, Qingxu mature vinegar is brown-red in color, and has a delicate fragrance.

Qingxu vinegar makes a good seasoning. It makes dishes more delicious and helps food to digest. In addition, it's medically effective, and is often claimed to be capable of preventing high blood pressure, hepatitis and skin diseases.

But the traditional technique of producing vinegar in Qingxu is in danger of being undermined because some unscrupulous people have begun producing inferior vinegar in order to make a profit. Therefore, more rules and regulations are needed to protect the traditional technique.