Baijiu and China
Food Chain Radio Show #1230
Michael Olson, Author & Urban Farming Agriculturalist
Baijiu and China
Guest: Derek Sandhaus, Author. Drunk in China & Co-Founder of Ming River Sichuan Baijiu
When in Zhong Guo, it is perfectly all right for a visitor from Mei Guo to get drunk on baijiu , even during business dinners with very important clients. It’s a tradition dating back some 9,000 years, give or take. Why, if you were to leave the dinner sober, your hosts might think they’ve failed to show you the proper hospitality.
Michael Olson Food Chain Radio – Drinking Up China’s Baijiu– What can one learn by getting drunk in China?
And, as a Mei Guo ren, you will likely be expected to drink more than your Zhong Guo ren hosts, as the belief exists in Zhong Guo that Mei Guo ren can drink much more than Zhong Guo ren.
It is also very important that you drink whatever your hosts offer. This is called “jiudan” which means drink courage, and the more of jiudan you have, the more respect you gain. Of course, having all this drink courage does not mean you have “jiuliang” which is the ability to hold your drink. Then again it’s always a point of pride, wherever you are, to be able to hold your drink.
And of course, it’s most important that you have good “jiupin” which is to say, you behave yourself even though you are falling down drunk in China.
This business dinner leads us to ask…
Leave a comment below: What can we learn while drunk in China?
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