p MILK-WINE DISTILLING TECHNOLOGY IN THE MONGOL- STILL AN quer YUAN PERIOD Luo Feng #@ At the exhibition ‘Genghis Khan—the Ancient Nomadic Culture of Northern China” eat AF (ARATE PEO ACA jointly ented by the China Millennium Monument World Art Museum ae ISG and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Museum Wy geankMye in the spring of 2004, a bronze liquor still (figure 1; labeled “Bronze Fermentation-of-Alcohol Pot” SAREE in the exhibit caption) attracted the author’s attention. Later, the author had the opportunity to study this still closely with the assistance of colleagues at the Inner Mongolia Museum. Figure 1 The Bronze Liquor Still Unearthed from Bairin Left Banner, Inner Mongolia488 Luo Feng Figure 2 A Cross-Section of the Bairin Left Banner Still and i its Cy (reversed view) and the Details of the Handle and Spout ondenser This bronze liquor still (figure 2) is 48.8 cm tall and consists of two parts: the bottom part is the boiler %@ and the top part is a pan-shaped container (the condenser 1). The boiler has a round bottom and a swelling belly; the steep shoulder atop it leads to the mouth, which has a circular gutter on its rim. The boiler is 33 cm tall and 42.4 cm wide at its largest diameter at the belly. The outer rim of the mouth is 3 cm in height and the inner rim 1.5 cm. The gutter between them, which leads to a spout attached to the outer rim, is 2.5 cm deep (figure 3-1). The spout (figure 3-4) is 6 cm in length and 2 cm in width. It is welded to the outer rim and the hole which links the gutter and the spout is rectangular, 2 cm in width and 0.5 cm in height. The boiler is cast of three pieces from a composite mold and the casting fins are not filed down. The bottom is slightly damaged: the inner and outer surfaces all show that the bottom has been burnt for @ rather long time and damaged and mended with pig iron patches (figure 3 2). The very thick boiler body plus the patches make the remaining depth of the boiler only 32.4 cm. The pan-shaped container (condenser) is 17cm in height and 41.6 cm in diameter. It has two rectangular handles, each 13 cm in width and 5.2 cm in height, with arc braces on both sides which are set symmetrically on the rim. On the outer wall near the bottom, bie symmetric solid handles are attached (figure 3-3). The container Loe only 11 cm tall, and its bottom, which is 38.4 cm in diameter, is co™ (as seen from inside, figure 3-5) and in the shape of a dome, which at itsLiquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 489 re 3 (1-5) Bairin Left Banner Still 5 highest point is about 5 cm high. On the bottom rim is a spout leading outward, the length of which is 5 cm, with an outer diameter of 2.4 cm and an inner diameter of 1.9 cm. The edge of the dome-shaped bottom of the container fits tightly over the boiler. The container’s body is thinner than that of the boiler. Some rust and a riveted crack can be seen on the outer Surface, According to the collection archive of the Inner Mongolia Museum, this still (the “Bronze Fermentation-of-Alcohol Pot”) has been on loan from the Bairin Left Banner Museum ELAR Zc iit, Chifeng City a ‘75, since 1987. It was uncarthed in 1983 at Shierduan Village += B&H, Longchang Township E43, Bairin Left Banner EK 2: lie. Inner Mongolia, and dates roughly to the period of the Mongol Empire. | ita tee see Millennium Monument World Art Museum‘ $ (H 42 9848 #8768 and Inner Ngolia Autonomous Region Museum W% th E 3#Kk MPH, editors, Genghis Khan.490 Luo Feng However, because of the wide range in periods of the other Objects unearthed together with the still, there is no way to ascertain a clear date, Another discovery of this type is a set of bronze “stills” unearthed in Xishanzui Village HHI 4A, Qinglong County #f HELL, Hebei Wt Province in 1975 (figure 4), whose structure and composition are ye, similar to the one unearthed from Bairin Left Banner. The still in figure 4 also consists of a boiler and a pan-shaped condenser, with the slight difference that this boiler has an external flat ring around its belly and the condenser is taller. Initially this still was dated as an artifact of the Jin Dynasty.” Later, through close comparisons, it was dated to between the later period of the Liao # Dynasty and the early period of the Yuan K Dynasty. In other words, it belongs either to the Jin Dynasty or to the end of the Jin and the beginning of the Yuan Dynasties.’ Enthusiastic discussions have been conducted in academic circles regarding the usage and mechanism of this still. The Ancient Nomadic Culture of Northern China (iSt E+ PIRES RALa HEEL SCHL) (Beijing: Beijing Press {CZ HIM#L, 2004), p. 298. In this book this “Bronze Fermentation-of-Alcohol Pot” is described as being unearthed fom Bairin Right Banner, but without an exact location. Through tke efforts of Ms. Su Dong a, my colleague working at the Inner Mongolia Museum, he author obtained reliable information thet it was unearthed at Shierduan Village, Longchang Township, and that the old information was incorrect. : * Chengde City Bishushan Village Administration JK (8 77 38 iL HES ue, “A Jin Dynasty Bronze Liquot-Making Pot Unearthed in Qinglong County, Hebei” (i107 TERRILL | Se CEDAGAD , Cultural Relics. (XH) , 1976, no. 9, pp. 98-9. * Chengde City Bishushan Village Museum #& (iv #8 3 uy HE PR OH, “A Brief Investigation of the Jin Dynasty Still” (ACE OR BEERS) , Archaeology (875) » 1980, no. 5, pp. 466-71 and 405, especially p. 468. Figure 4 here is reproduced from Chengde City Bishushan Village Museum, “A Brief Investigation of the Jin DynastY Still,” p. 468, figure 5-1Liquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 491 Figure 4 A Cross-Section of the Bronze Liquor Still Unearthed in Qinglong County, Hebei Province Condenser onvex Bottom c Side Spout Circular Gutter. Spout The majority opinion is that this still is important evidence showing the maturity of liquor distillation technology in China and can be regarded as the first formal apparatus for liquor distillation.* Of course, severe disagreement has taken place among scholars on the issue of whether liquor distillation was invented locally in China or was introduced from the Arabian region.” The purpose of this paper is not to settle these huge “Li Huarui 424644, “Debate on the Origin of Liquor Distillation in China” (PFU #MNATE) , Trends in Recent Research on the History of China (PS S257) ®) , 1990, no. 8, pp. 15-9. There have been many hypotheses on the origin of the alcohol distillation in China, and these can be classified into the following five types: 1) in the Eastern Han 903%; 2) in the ‘Tang Dynasty; 3) in the Song Dynasty; 4) in the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234); and 5) in the Yuan Dynasty. For type one see Sun Ji J (&, “On the Origins of Grain Liquor and Dist Liquor in China” (RERUN A SAAT > , in Yang Hong #34 and Sun Ji RB, The Exquisite in the Ordinary (3351 8480) (Shenyang: Liaoning Education Press if 3¢#1 IML4L, 1996), p. 186; for type two see Zhou Jiahua JA, et al, 4 History of Chinese Chemistry — Ancient Texts Ch Be - ERED (Nanning (4°: Guangxi Education Press (06 HC fi Ui hitt, 2003), pp. 723-6. At the beginning stages (the 1950s-1960s), only general opinions about all of these hypotheses Were published, without detailed discussions; ef. Yuan Hanging 3 #77, “The Origin and492 Luo Feng and long-standing disputes, but to fill in a few gaps in the issues Which have already been discussed. An in-depth discussion on some topics usually relies on new discoveries, and this new material can lead Scholars to a new perspective and new thinking about old issues. The “Liquor stip discovered in Bairin Left Banner may be positively meaningful in this sense. 2 From an archacological point of view, what we are most concerned about is the date of this type of still. For example, the “liquor-making still” found in Qinglong County was first dated to the Jin Dynasty. The evidence for this was that porcelain sherds and bronze coins with 25 reign period titles of the Northern Song (L4, Liao, and Jin Dynasties were found in the cultural layers where the “still” was unearthed. Among them the latest were from the Dading Kz reign period (1161-1189) of the Jin Dynasty Emperor Shizong ttt3<. The detailed stratigraphy was described in a later archaeological report and some errors in the original report were corrected. The report did not describe the excavation processes, but did explain the stratigraphy. According to my understanding, following the discovery of the still, a supplementary dig in the trench explained the piling up of the cultural layers. The trench measured three by two meters and 2.5 meters in depth. There were eight main types of artifacts found, divided into white- glazed porcelain sherds, pottery sherds and one drip-tile, other iron pots, a Development of Wine Fermentation in China” (RGAE FRAUAVEEYE AUB E) , in Yuan Hanging #7, Collected Essays on the History of Chemistry in China (BS #@ SCH) (Beijing: SDX Joint Publishing Company “E iq + aH + BAN = BAT, 1956), pp. 95-6. Recently, Li Huarui explained the origins of these hypotheses and supported the hypothesis that “(wine distillation was started in) the Song Dynasty”; cf, Li Huarui #4 Hii, Song Dynasty Liquor Production and Tax Monopoly ¢ (384 154 BUBB) (Baoding (R72: Hebei University Press 71k AF ARFL, 2001), pp. 43-71. The “Yuan Dynasty” hypothesis, although an old one, has recovered its prevailing influence because of the exceptional research by Huang Shijian #1898; see Huang Shijian URGE, “Ala/! and the Origin of Liquor Distillation in China” ¢ Bi] fi) 2 5} Bij a vai 0 #2 Mi? Literature and History (3X) , vol. 31 (1988), pp. 159-72, especially pp. 159-66. However, the above-mentioned text A History of Chinese Chemistry ~ Ancient Texts analyzed and disputed all of these hypotheses, and pointed out that it is unquestionable that liquor distillation had existed in the Yuan Dynasty, but the issue of whether liquor distillation was originated in the Yuan Dynasty or earlier is still awaiting further resear™ (see A History of Chinese Chemisiry ~ Ancient Scrolls, p. 733).Liquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 493 curve-handled iron hoe, a bronze Buddhist image, and more than one jundred jin JF [more than 100 pounds] of bronze coins. They were all said to have been unearthed from the same cultural layer. The opening of the it was uncovered four meters from the trench of this cultural layer, and within the pit, 50 cm below the opening, the “liquor-making still” was discovered. These artifacts comprise the basic evidence for the dating: the porcelain reflects the period of the Liao or Jin Dynasties, the curve- handled iron hoe and pot are Jin Dynasty products, and the small bronze Buddha was a relic often seen during the Jin Dynasty, the Bhikkhu tt Fr. image. The latest of the coins was minted in the Dading era. The shape of the drip-tile and the pattern of its surface decoration is very similar to that of ones unearthed from the Houyingfang (€2% 55 Yuan Dynasty residential remains in Beijing. However, the authors of the report argued that the drip-tile from the Qinglong site is large and coarse, and the decoration is crowded and awkward, differing from that of the Houyingfang site, whose tiles were slender and elegant. Therefore, the Qinglong drip-tile would have been earlier than the Houyingfang one, and thus it was a relic of the Jin Dynasty or the early period of the Yuan Dynasty. Having considered these factors, the authors of the report came to a comprehensive conclusion that this site was mainly a Jin one, whose terminus post quem would be the later period of the Liao Dynasty and terminus ante quem would be the early period of the Yuan Dynasty. Therefore the “liquor- making still” would be an artifact of the Jin Dynasty or the early period of the Yuan Dynasty. It must be said that this type of inference regarding the determination of the general period of archaeological remains appears to be without large error. However, the problem is that despite having made this inference (a Jin or early Yuan date), the report was entitled “Jin Still” and pointed out this dating as a special feature.° This led Mr. Huang Shijian $82 to challenge the dating, as a key matter arose from this drip-tile. He believed that the Qinglong three-cornered drip-tile and the Yuan Dynasty drip-tiles unearthed from the sites of Qara-Qorum li f7Fi AK, Daidu (Khanbaliq) Af, Shangdu (Xanadu) [-.#5, and Daning Road KH were, in terms of design, obviously of the same type. As for the Coarse manufacturing of the Qinglong drip-tile, the reason that it is a “The later research report still referred the date of this still as “Jin.” See Chengde City Bishushan Village Museum AR (8 117 82- LE M8, “A Brief Investigation of the Jin Dynasty Still” (SHR ARSEERED , Archaeology (iN) , 1980, no. 5, p. 466.494 Luo Feng different from the exquisite and elegant ones found in the other sites jg absolutely because those were remains from high status architecture, In this way, the terminus ante quem of the Qinglong site should be the Yuan Dynasty.’ Of course, from an even more perfectionist perspective, the original archaeological report had another flaw when it determined that there was a clear connection between the trench and the “liquor-making still”: it was dug out of a cylindrical pit, but the trench did not open cnto the cylindrical pit and was located four meters away from it. In other words, the dates of the relics unearthed from the trench can not be used to directly prove the date of the circular pit, let alone to infer the date of the making of the still. Therefore, even if the trench would make the dating of the site clear, the date of the “Qinglong liquor-making still” based on the site could still be as late as the Yuan Dynasty. The shape and functions of the Bairin Left Banner still resemble those of the Qinglong still, and although there was no opportunity to closely examine the Qinglong still, via the archaeological report one can see that there are some differences in the details. The Qinglong still has an extemal flat ring around the center of its belly, but the Bairin Left Banner still does not; the condenser of the former is 16 cm tall, while that of the latter is only 11 cm tall; the condenser of the former has a ring foot with an inverted lip which fits tightly to the boiler, but that of the latter does not; no traces of casting can be seen on the former, but the latter clearly has casting fins showing that it was cast out of a three-piece composite mold; the body thickness of the former is even, but that of the boiler and steamer of the latter are very uneven. These differences mainly reflect a differing level of functional convenience and differing aspects of the manufacturing techniques. The flat ring on the belly makes the Qinglong still easy to carry and handle. The higher condenser contains more water for cooling; and contrary-wise for the smaller one. The ring foot of the condenser has an inverted lip making for a tight seal with the outer lip of the body and thus guaranteeing no leakage of steam. The multi-part casting and the uneven thickness of the Bairin Left Banner still show that the manufacturing technique was crude. Comparing all of these details, W° can see that there is a chronological relationship between the Qinglong a! the Bairin Left banner stills. The Qinglong still obviously is an advance 9 7 Huang, Shijian #194, “The Origin of Liquor Distillation in China and Chinese stills” Co} BS La Bf EY ZAABASD , Literature and History ¢3C 2) 1996, no. 41, PP- 145-6.Liquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 495 poth form and function over the Bairin Left Banner still, and it is not difficult to conclude that the Bairin Left Banner still is earlier, although they both could belong to the Mongol-Yuan period. 3 In the earliest report, the Qinglong still was considered to be a “liquor- making pot”® #3449 [literally, a “burnt wine pot], and later it was cautiously called a “still” ‘818%.° The Bairin Left Banner still has a similar shape, structure, and function. Their basic mechanism is this: the condenser (with a convex bottom) on the top is used to contain cold water. The side spout was corked when the cold water was poured in. The raw material (fermented mash) was put into the boiler, on top of which the condenser was mounted, and the assembled still was heated from the bottom. When the raw material was boiled, the vapor rising from it cooled down when it ran into the cold water-cooled convex bottom of the condenser (which forms a dome over the boiling raw material) and condensed into a liquid which flowed along the dome into the circular gutter and finally into a receiving container through the spout of the circular gutter. This is the workflow of distillation. The condenser on the top is a cooler into which cold water is added and out of which heated water is drained by unplugging the side spout (figure 5). 5 This object was called “a Jin bronze liquor-making still” in the earliest preliminary Teport and was used to conduct a liquor distilling experiment under the direction of ‘echnicians in the distillery workshop of the comprehensive processing plant of the hengde Municipal Grain Bureau, Sec Chengde City Bishtshan Village Administration, Jit Dynasty Bronze Liquor-Making Pot Unearthed in Qinglong County, Hebei”, Cultural Relics, 1976, no. 9, p. 98 cchenede City Bishushan Village Museum, “A Brief Investigation of the Jin Dynasty Pt,” Archaeology, 1980, no. 3, p. 466. Figure 5 here is modified from Chengde City Bishushan Village Museum, “A Brief hvestigation of the Jin Dynasty Still,” p. 468, figure 5-2. Translator’s nose496 Luo Feng Figure 5 The Distillation Workflow of the Qinglong Still Under the impression that this was a distilling apparatus, the authors of the archaeological report conducted an experiment to distill liquor utilizing the Qinglong still. The experiment consisted of two trials. “In the first test, 8 jin Jy of raw material (fermented rice husk) yielded 0.9 jin of liquor containing 9.4% alcohol; in the second test, 6 jin of raw material yielded 0.56 jin of liquor containing 9.7% alcohol.” These results demonstrated that this “liquor-making still” could really make “liquor” in the strict sense, but the yield ratio and the alcohol percentage were low. Their explanation of these results had two parts. First, the mouth of the condenser had been broken, so it could only contain 4/5 of the cold water, which affected the cooling function; moreover, the spout conducting the liquor from the gutter into the outside container was leaking, so that some vaporized and liquefied liquor could have been lost. Second, the shape and structure of the boiler limited the volumes of raw material and water to a ratio of roughly one-to-one, which in comparison to the present-day ratio 0! alcohol-containing materials to water had much lower content of raw material. Therefore the yield ratio and the alcohol percentage were both very low. The authors of the report regretfully agreed that even if the broken places were repaired and the leaking was overcome, the still coulLiquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 497 not perform better. '© However, was the unsatisfactory result caused by the imperfect still itself, or by the unsuitable operation and working procedure? First, let us examine their way of adding raw material to the still. A suitable quantity of water was poured into the boiler, and then a foldable grid woven of sorghum stalks or another similar material was set at one third of the height of the boiler. This acted as a permeable barrier holding the material in the boiler. During the distillation, the raw material (fermented mash) was gradually added according to the rising of the vapor until the still was filled up to its mouth with the correctly prepared steamed material. Second, the action of the foldable grid is the key to this method. As observed by the authors of the report, the traces on the inner wall of the boiler of the Qinglong still clearly divide it into three zones. The bottom zone, from the bottom to a height of 6 cm, is dark grey, which was formed by the boiling and immersing of the raw material in the water. The middle zone, about 10 cm in height, is light grey, formed by contact with the raw material. The top zone, also about 10 cm in height, has a layer of patina resulted from erosion caused by direct contact with the hot vapor and humid air.'' Because the boiler’s inner wall is plain and smooth without any preset struts or anything projecting for supporting a grid, therefore the authors of the report at the time of the experiment designed a foldable grid made of sorghum stalks to match the size of the boiler. Using a grid to hold the semi-finished product was a mistaken concept of the experimenters, and in reality at the time the still was in use, there fundamentally was no flexible grid of this kind holding the material. Just like Qinglong still, the Bairin Left Banner still also has a very dark zone near the bottom. Moreover, because of the frequent and long-lasting burning, the bottom had been damaged and mended several times. As for the traces of the two zones above the dark zone, this situation is often €neountered by experienced archaeologists during their excavations of Containers. If the vessel was completely or partly filled with silts, theses silts would have left clear marks on the inner wall when they are removed. Therefore, these marks are absolutely not necessarily traces of boiling or Cooking, and the authors of the report did not even give any information Indicating whether or not silt was found in the boiler when it was ————— \ * Chengde City Bishushan Village Administration, “A Jin Dynasty Bronze Liquor- Making Pot Unearthed in Qinglong County, Hebei”, Cultural Relics, 1976, no. 9, p. 99. Chengde City Bishushan Village Museum, “A Brief Investigation of the Jin Dynasty Stil,” Archaeology, 1980, no. 5, p. 470.498 Luo Feng excavated. The authors of the report also admitted that the raw materia} could have been placed directly into the boiler, but they believed that it was used in this way only for the distillation of medicinal elixirs from flowers, so they eliminated this possibility for distillation of liquor, Theoretically, the Qinglong still has the technical functions and structura} features of a distilling apparatus, but, as shown by the experiment mentioned above conducted by the authors, it obviously cannot satisfactorily meet the demands of satisfactory production efficiency, Hong Guangzhu #4)¢{E also questioned the liquor-making capability of the Qinglong still. A still of this size (an overall height of 41.6 cm) could not be used in daily life. If it was used for the distilling of wine made by liquid fermentation, then this kind of wine would very likely have been koumiss, or mare’s milk wine.'? Huang Shijian used his profound knowledge of Mongolia to disprove Hong Guangzhu’s supposition, and he said that the assumption that the Qinglong still was used to process koumiss seems not to match the actual situation. He explained that in the pastoral region the distillation of all of fermented material, including milk, is done with “Mongolian” stills (named by Joseph Needham, following Hommel), whose sizes are usually much larger than that of the Qinglong still. “Just acknowledging that this still could be used to distill liquor makes it possible that it represents the beginning of liquor distilling in China, although we cannot prove the validity of this yet.”!? Because Huang Shijian’s view of the “Mongolian still” derives from Needham, it is necessary to have an in-depth discussion concerning the origin of this concept. An achievement of modern research is that it gives people grounds to suppose that distillation technology originated in ancient India, the basis of which is understanding the phenomenon that similar techniques are widely diffused and distributed among Asian peoples. Of course, it is also easy for us to imagine that distillation technology was introduced into Central Asia and Mongolia following Buddhism. However, this question 1S difficult to answer at present, because there is no record in reliable "2 Hong, Guangzhu }£3t(%:, A Drafi History of Chinese Food Products Science cet SRR}E AB) (Beijing: China Commercial Press ‘Pi HHL, 1985), vol. 1, P- _ ® Huang Shijian S/H, “The Origin of Chinese Liquor Distillation and Chinese Stills (fs BRUGES AL AGB BAR ARARY Literature and History (LS) , vol. 41 (1996) P- 145Liquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 499 documents of the time of the invention of this technology. The chronological reliability of Chinese historical documents provides favorable conditions for some useful exploration, especially regarding distillation apparatuses. Figure 6 The Chinese or Mongolian Still; (1) Schematic Diagram; (2) Glass Model A 1 2 Dr. Needham conducted special investigations regarding the history and geographical distribution of all possible forms of distillation and extraction apparatuses, and among these East Asian types aroused his Particular interest. Historians of chemistry had not fully realized that in this regard the two areas of China and Mongolia were important, especially the latter.'° The route of Dr. Needham’. exploration of ancient Chinese stills began with the examination of Daoist alchemists’ devices for making elixirs and immortality drugs,'® some methods and equipment of which had features in common with distillation apparatuses. '7 Even 1 Gésta Montell, “Distilling in Mongolia,” Ethnos IT, 1937, no. 5, p. 321. Needham, Joseph and Ping-Yi Ho, Science and Civilization in China, Volume 5: Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 4, Spagyrical Discovery and Invention APparatus, Theories and Gifts (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1980), pp. 103- "* Ho, Ping-Yu and Joseph Needham, “The Laboratory Equipment of the Early Mediaeval Chinese Alchemists,” Ambix, no. 7 (1959), pp. 57-115; Ho, Peng-Yoke fH]H4(B8 and He Guanbiao “ei, Essays on the History of Chinese Technology «PARLEY E8ti8) sons Kong: China Book Company Hong Kong Branch "Pej #385) Ri, 1983), pp. 7 A. R. Butler and Joseph Needham, “An Experimental Comparison of the East Asian, Hellenistic and indian (Gandhatan) Stills in Relation to the Distillation of Ethanol and ctic Acid,” Ambix, no. 27 (1980), pp. 69-76. Figure 6 heze is taken from A. R. Butler Std Joseph Needham, “An Experimental Comparison of the East Asian, Hellenistic and500 Luo Feng though the objectives were the same, the still structures were different, Taking an understanding of the differences between distillation equipment among different civilizations as his objective, in addition to describing the four basic forms of stills, Dr. Needham created copies of these stills in glass for experimental purposes. Ariong these four forms two are related to China ~ the so-called Mongolian and the Chinese types (figure 6). Of course, the basis for Dr. Needham’s copying of the “Chinese form” still was the elixir-making devices as recorded in ancient texts. The “Mongolian form” still was borrowed from Hommel’s work written in the 1930s. This work had an illustration (figure 7), Dr. Needham’s description of which is: The vapors from a boiling liquid in a pan 3& below are condensed on the under surface of a similar pan of cold water placed above, and caught in a bowl resting on a shelf in the middle of the space formed by a wooden cylindrical barrel-like wall ii. Such stills are used for preparing the spirit distilled from fermented mare’s milk.'* Indian (Gandharan) Stills in Relation to the Distillation of Ethanol and Acetic Acid,” P 70, figure 1. 'S Joseph Needham and Ping-Yi Ho, Science and Civilization in China, Volume a Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Part 4, Spagyrical Discovery and Invention: Apparatus, Theories and Gifs, p. 64 [the diagram is on p. 62]. See also Ping-Yit Ho and Joseph Needham, “The Laboratory Equipment of the Early Mediaeval Chines? Alchemists,” Ambix, no. 7 (1959), pp. 57-115.Liquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 501 Receving Bowl Although a bit convoluted, the core mechanism of this still is that when the raw material is heated, its steam rises to the cold bottom of the condenser above it, and then condenses and falls from the condenser bottom into a bowl on a shelf between the boiling material and the condenser bottom, successfully forming alcohol. Dr. Needham strongly Tecommends Montell’s article on Mongolian distillation in which he described three types of still (burchur): “the Mongol one proper with the central catch-bowl, the Chinese one with the side-tube originating from a flat cup or shallow grooved rectangular wooden plate, and lastly one of retort type in which the heated pot is simply connected by an arched Wooden leather covered tube with an iron receiver jug standing in a basin of cold water. Notable is the use of clay-daubed felt for making joints Steam-tight, since felt was one of the most characteristic Mongol502 Luo Feng inventions.”!? The “central catch-bowl” system was the most common type seen in the Mongolian region. In the 1940s Dong Zhengjun WIESY observed this distilling process when he was conducting sociological investigations in Inner Mongolia, Ejin Banner 48 3% 44 ME. First, the fermented milk was poured into a pot and this pot was set into an empty bowl or basin. Then a bottomless wooden barrel was set on top of the pot, and a pot of cold water was mounted on top of the wooden barrel. When the fermented milk in the lower pot was heated, clear milk liquor was produced in the bowl or basin.2° Gésta Montell used exhaustive efforts to try to outline the most general types of milk liquor distillation used in the Mongol steppe region and by the Mongol people. But because of the vast area and the small scale of production (usually the milk liquors were homemade), there was absolutely no standardization of either production or the manufacturing of equipment. So he actually could not find all of the types and derive the most basic principles. At the end of the 18th century, the famous German scholar Peter Simon Pallas observed and noted the milk liquor making technique of the Kalmyk people in the Volga valley. A tripod was set up in the middle of a yurt on which a large cauldron was mounted. After the fermented milk was poured in, a cauldron (chaiBun) was covered with a wooden lid through which two holes were cut. The cauldron and the lid were sealed tightly together with fresh cow dung or sometimes with clay or dough. The distillate receiver was a kettle, the lid of which had a large hole and a small vent. The hole on the cauldron lid and that on the kettle were linked by a pipe named a Zooros (Zorgo in Mongolian), and the steam from the cauldron condensed into liquor in the kettle.?! Based on accounts by Mongolians, Georg Soderbom drew 4 © Gésta Montell, “Distilling in Mongolia,” Ethnos II, 1937, no. 5, p. 324. Figure 8 here is taken from Gésta Montell, “Distilling in Mongolia,” p. 328, figure 7. Needham, Joseph and Ping-Yii Ho, Science and Civilization in China, Volume 5, Part 4, p. 103. Dong Zhengjun HIE, Juyan Lake (Ejin Banner) JaiEi: (A ARB) 1944), included in Chaogetu Kf l8l, ed., Alxa League Historical Records were established, .” Sce Ban, Gu BEIEl, History of the Former Han (AS) , “Tables of Official Posts of High Ranking Officials, First Part” (iH 2982) (Beijing: Zhonghua Book Company 'f###Ja}, 1962), pp. 729-30. The English translation is by Homer Dubs (here modified) and as of this writing is available on-line at: http://libweb.uoregon.edu/ec/e-asia/read/Dubs_Vol_IV.pdf, pp. 60-2. Soe epee, JA; SAT, URI. Hk a, fhe eH” Wang Guowei FIV, A Brief History of the Black Tatars Annotated (2.483% 28) , in Posthumous Papers of Wang Guowei (MAHER) (Shanghai: Shanghat Ancient Books Book Company #1! H/F, 1983), vol. 13, ch. 57.Liquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 513 used a rather long piece of writing to record its production procedure.“ However, the Mongolian people had not been using the method of distillation to get Koumiss for a very long time, and Rubruck also did not describe distillation — perhaps he only wrote about products that were rare in Europe. The description in /nterpretation matches the diffusion history of liquor distillation, especially the device described as a steamer i and the method “just as the people in the Central Plains [China proper] distill liquor.” The top parts of the Bairin Left Banner and Qinglong stills are both in the shape of a steamer, the sizes of which are similar to the cauldrons popular in the steppe area during the Mongol-Yuan period with a diameter of approximately 40 cm.** Xiao Daheng if A7F methodically described the procedure for distilling koumiss in his Customs of the Northern Barbarians Abs BUS: Just milked mare’s milk is too sweet to drink; two or three days later it will be too sour to drink and can only be used to make liquor, the way of which is nothing different from our way of burning (distilling) wine. The first time it is milk which is being burnt; the second time it is wine (distilled from the milk); the end product after three or four times of burning is the strongest liquor, which is only presented to the lords as tribute or used to entertain guests, but not drunk on ordinary days.“ Drinking was an important component of traditional culture over the whole of the Mongolian steppe and the only means for people to associate. “William of Rubruck, “The Journey of William of Rubruck,” in Christopher Dawson, et al, The Mongol Mission: Narratives and Letters of the Franciscan Missionaries in Mongolia and China in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries. (New York: Sheed and Ward, 1955), pp. 98-9 China Millennium Monument World Art Museum +1 #¢ {1 £04848 (76H and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Museum PY 3% 15 {1/1 BR RUMEN, eds., Genghis Khan: The Ancient Nomadic Culture of Northern China (Beis RAFF: POM 4 (CL Oy BEC 46) Beijing: Beijing Press 4 SHHML#: 2004), The iron cauldrons listed on pp. 296-9 are all about 40 em in diameter. FUR, AHA AD fe: BOLE, RMA TIT ee, MEHR GE, SR WECLIUAZ, UKDUREZ, UES UUYK, RNA, IRAE La, A St” Xiao Daheng i AF, Customs of the Northern Barbarians CEILI) , the entry “Food and so on” «fj (Taipei: Kuangwen Books /# <#/Fi, 1972), p. 13.514 Luo Feng Many people were even deeply addicted to drink. Chinggis Khan repeatedly criticized drunkards in his last edicts and finally had no alternative but to say that if there was no way to entirely stop drinking, then in each month at most three bouts of drinking would be permitted. Drinking more than three times in a month would be considered a fault, two times would be better, and only one time would be best of all. And those who completely stopped drinking would be greatly rewarded.*” The extraordinary consumption of liquor provided a powerful impetus for the development of liquor manufacturing. When distillation technology was introduced to the Mongols, the quality of the distilled alcoholic beverages rose rapidly. As Xu Youren of the Yuan Dynasty said, distillation skills were “diffused from the Imperial Manufactories jij /7 to the nobility and now spread everywhere under heaven.’ At the very beginning distilled liquor was only popular among the nobility, and later it spread to the common people. Koumiss was 2 daily beverage of Mongolia, so the simple quantity of consumption could not act as a standard for social discrimination. So how many times liquor was distilled became a key choice for the Mongolian nobility. The quality of distilled koumiss rose according to the drinkers’ position in the social hierarchy. Some have said that there were five ranks of distilled koumiss among the Mongol peoples: arkhi (ayy), arz (ayZ), khorz (XOyY), sharz (uryAZr), and dun (gy#), having differing alcohol content of between 9-11 and 30 or so percent.” Compared to non-distilled koumiss, the alcohol content of which was generally one to two percent, this was great progress. Similar koumiss grade titles given by the Kalmyk people were also found in Pallas” travels: their koumiss distilled from the raw material (Arr’ki) for the first time was called Dang, koumiss distilled for the second time was called Arsa, and 47 Rashid al-Din, Jami’ al-Tawarikh (Compendium of Chronicles), translated into Chinese by Yu Dajun #443, et al., as (54) (Beijing: The Commercial Press i EFA, 1997), vol. 1, pt. 2, p. 358. 4H GEL, SUPER FR.” Xu Youren #41 =, chapter sixteen of “Collection of the Zhizheng Reign Period” (42 I-48) , pp. 85-6. «Mouronaw WanectHo nats cTerenell neperoukH BoaKa (apru, aps, xops, wap3, OY", tuxana kpertocta KoTopsix pospacraet or 9-11 10 30°.” Haraaua JIsposua Kyxowexes Co L. Zhukovskaya), “Tluma kouesnuzon Ierrpanpuoii Asun: K nonpocy © 5KOMOrHGECKHX OCHOBAX GOpMHpoRAHHA MogenH muTaHns” (“The Food of the Nomads of Central Asia: On the Problem of the Ecological Basis of the Nutrient Model”), Cosemcxan smnozpacua (Soviet Ethnography), 1979, no. 5, p. 72.Liquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 515 that for the third time Chorza. Further distillations were usually not done, but the Kalmyk people had terms referring to koumisses distilled for as many as six times, which were Schingza and Dingze.*° The raw material for the Mongols to make this kind of liquor (sayali-yinarigi) was mainly cow’s milk and mare’s milk. The products were ranked from the first “pot” (time of distillation) through the sixth “pot.” The sixth pot, “dungsugur,” was the essence of koumiss and was paid as tribute to the emperor.°' However, “dungsugur” seems not to have been the ultimate rank of koumiss. In the Mongol version of the Gesar Khan, Berthold Laufer found eight terms referring to koumiss, which were all supposed to be distilled from the first koumiss (araki—alaji). Their names are: aradsa (araja), xoradsa or xuradsa, Siradsa, boradsa, takpa, tikpa, marba, and mirba.” Xoradsa ot xuradsa and Siradsa all have the same root and are derived from aradsa. Siradsa was “wine distilled for the fourth time (esprit de vin quadruple).”** Despite the fact that drinking simply- processed koumiss was a routine fact of life for the nomads, the ranking of food quality was a byproduct of the social hierarchy, for which the example of alcoholic beverages is especially outstanding. In nomadic society alcohol was one of the few luxury products of the nobility. The brewing of black koumiss mentioned above had been entrusted to a particular tribe since Chinggis Khan’s reign. *4 When distillation technology was introduced, the people in each privileged social class “Der zum erstenmal vom Arr’ki tibergetriebne Branntwein wird Dang genennt; nach der zweisten Verdoppelung heift er Arsa und nach der dritten Chorza. Weiter pflegen sie nicht zu gehen, sie haben aber noch bis zur sechsten Recti‘ication cigne Nahmen, wovon die ersten Schingza und Dingza sind.” Peter Simon Pallas, Sammlungen historischer Nachrichten iiber die mongolischen Vélkerschaften in einem ausfiihrlichen Auszuge (Frankfort and Leipzig: J. G, Fleischer, 1779), p. 207. Cf. Kokebuyan PAI #, ed., Monggol-un jang tiile-yin mérdel (327% BUSHES) (Tracing Mongolian Customs) ([Qaiilar]: Obor Monggol-un Suyul-un Keblel- in Qoriy-a (nner Mongolia Cultural Press) i 32141 44! 44, 1988), pp. 89-91 (published in Mongolian); Rongsuhe 4k#%, A History of Literature of the Mongolian Nationality SEH IKXEL) , vol. 1 (Hohhot: Inner Mongolia People’s Press 43 i AEGUBRAE, 3000), p. 553. 7 Berthold Laufer, Sino-Iranica, p. 235 Ibid, A Qipéag tribe was in charge of making mare's milk wine for the Mongol chiefs. See a, Guowei “ELE, A Brief History of the Black Tatars Annotated (4305S. *D in Posthumous Papers of Wang Guowei (CF BIMER#E) (Shanghai: Shanghai Ancient Books Book Company itis 4824/8, 1983), vol. 13, ch. 57.516 Luo Feng could each enjoy the koumiss whose quality matched their status. °° Making every higher ranked koumiss required the use of lower ranked Koumiss as raw material. Therefore, the koumisses of the fifth or sixth rank (let alone koumiss of the highest — the eighth rank) would consume surprisingly large quantities of koumiss of the first rank. As Xiao Daheng ii KF noted, the Mongol people “have wines of many titles and names, most of which are made from milk; several cups of the thickest one will get one deeply drunk.”*° The various titles and names of koumisses that are confusing to outsiders were actually names for koumisses distilled for different times and of different qualities. Efficient apparatuses, such as the Bairin Left Banner and Qinglong stills, could be used to produce a more purified koumiss. In the feasts held by the Mongols, the offering of koumiss by the host signified the degree of importance they attached to their guests. By means of providing the best things, nomadic peoples expressed the respect of the host for his guests. When koumiss was being poured into a silver cup, all of the attendees at the feast first were silent; when this cup of koumiss was received by the most celebrated guest, this guest would ritually dip his finger into the koumiss and drip some drops into the hearth and onto the stove pan as offerings to the gods of fire and the hearth, and then would savor the koumiss. Then the host would perform the same ceremony with other guests in the order of their status. Each guest drank three silver-cups full of alcohol distributed by the host, and then the guests would do the same in the same order toward the host and others. Only when all of the traditional ceremonies were completely finished would the attendees be able to continue drinking without restraint.*’ This custom led to the situation that “every household makes liquor and every person drinks greedily — the Mongols drink like bulls without break. They get ** For example, in Mongolian folk songs lauding Chinggis Khan we can find this lyric: “Let us fill the re-heated milk-wine into our cups, celebrate and sing together.” See D. Sambuu i€ + 34. Monggol arad-un daguu-yin cubural. Sili-vin Gool Ayimag-un (A Collection of Mongolian Folk Songs from Xilin Gol League) (iH RMGES. BAR SLD (Kokeqota]: Obdr Monggol-un Arad-un Keblel-iin Qoriy-a; Obér Monggol-un Sinquva Bicig-tin Delgegir tarqagaba, 1988), p. 29 (publ’shed in Mongolian). °° Xiao Daheng if AF, Customs of the Northern Barbarians (Ati8JE4@) , the entry “Food and soon” ¢#/H) (Taipei: Kuangwen Books ##3C## 53, 1972), p. 13. * Gésta Montell, “Distilling in Mongolia,” Ethnos I, 1937, no. 5, p. 321Liquor Still and Milk-Wine Distilling Technology 517 toweringly inebriated and sober up suddenly, no matter whether it is day or night.”°* Figure 9 The Assemblage of the Bairin Left Banner Still and an Iron Tripod of the Mongol Empire Period Although distillation technology had developed rapidly in different regions and civilizations, the critical technology was the important factor Testricting progress. In the Bairin Left Banner and Qinglong stills we can See some of the key technical details. The cool water in the container (condenser) allows more of the steam to be condensed, and the spout allows the heated water be drained off easily; the assembly of the dome- shaped top (the convex bottom of the condenser) and the circular gutter — Sie a iE, AA CB OH AE AA]. TORR TTR, ROR TOA, fe aan Min‘eshanren, Interpretation, in Wu Jian, ed., Collected Documents from Northwest China (Lanzhou: Lanzhou Ancient Books Book Company, 1990), vol. 79, p. 507.518 Luo Feng allow the distillate to be thoroughly collected; the direct addition of the fermented milk (primary koumiss) makes the operation of the apparatus simple and allows continuous distillation to be conducted. Furthermore, the tripod bracket which was cast and used during the Mongol Empire period” easily supported iron cauldrons 40 cm or so in diameter. This was the best stand for the still (figure 9), and under it the fuel could combust well. Although this apparatus is easier to use and more effective than other methods, nonetheless it certainly did not spread especially widely, and the milk liquor distilling methods used across the vast Mongolian steppes up to today are not the technical offspring of the Bairin Left Banner and Qinglong stills, but rather are the “Mongolian type” stills mentioned by Hommel and Needham, discussed above. The reason may be that these stills have very limited volumes, which cannot satisfy the demands of mass consumption, unlike the so-called “Mongolian style” stills, which can make large amounts of low-quality koumiss in a short time and provide for many more consumers than the bronze stills can. In short, the Bairin Left Banner and Qinglong stills, which were made during the Mongol-Yuan period for the distilling of milk liquor, are the earliest alcoholic beverage distillation apparatuses seen in China to date. The discovery of the Bairin Left Banner still gives us a new opportunity to discuss liquor distillation technology and a route to obtaining a more in- depth understanding of this issue. Postscript: During the writing of this paper the author received great assistance from Ms. Su Dong &f {of the Inner Mongolia Museum, and the author takes the opportunity here to express his deep appreciation to her. 5° China Millennium Monument World Art Museum and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Museum, eds., Genghis Khan: The Ancient Nomadic Culture of Northern China (Beijing: Beijing Press, 2004). On p. 296 an iron tripod “bracket” unearthed from Qingshui #472 County, Inner Mongolia is listed with an iron cauldron it supported.