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Guqi Whisky Distillery: World-class Chinese whiskies

The combination of Chinese tradition and Western craftsmanship is the basis for this whisky of the future. Inspiration comes from different cultures, resulting in a fusion of Chinese fermentation know-how, French distillation finesse and Scottish ageing wisdom. The focus is on China, using the Baijiu solid method to increase the concentration of aromatic compounds. Camus’ patented process achieves the highest concentration of aromatic substances. Scottish knowledge is based on the use of bourbon, cognac and Changbai Mountain Mongolian oak casks. The icing on the cake is a Chinese herbal essence based on traditional medicinal herbs and medical wisdom.

The Guqi Whisky Distillery is a joint venture between the Gujinggong Group and the Camus Group. The huge facility in Bozhou comprises production, research, customer experience and sales. The distillery combines elements from the region, known for its spirits and traditional herbs, with distillation techniques associated with cognac and maturation in Scotch whisky. The production integrates tradition and modern technology: three-stage mashing with variable temperatures to optimise extraction of fermentable sugars from the grain, 168-hour fermentation for slow interaction between yeast and wort, and pot still distillation to separate and refine alcohol and the essence of the herbs. The grand finale is double distillation in small batches with selection of the head components: for the ‘LIGHT’ style, the best foreshots and the fruitiest and freshest components; for the ‘RICH’ style, the best foreshots and the richest, spiciest and most floral essences.

The two new makes, Light Single Malt and Rich Single Malt, received Silver at the World Spirits Award.