The Yuan-Dynasty Wine Cellar

Lidu is the birthplace of China's liquor-making industry. In 2002, Hong Kong Hengyuan Development Investment Co., Ltd. acquired the Lidu Distillery and established a wine enterprise. In June of the same year, ancient liquor-making relics were unearthed during factory reconstruction.

After emergency excavation by the Jiangxi Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, well-preserved remains were uncovered, including Yuan-Dynasty wine cellars, a Ming-Dynasty well, drying yards, stoves, distillation equipment, drainage ditches, wall foundations and complete sets of liquor-making facilities.

The simple lattice windows, brownish-grey well edges and worn wine vats embody profound history. Like frozen melodies, they carry the passage of time deep into people’s hearts.

The site of the Yuan-Dynasty liquor distillery is the earliest distillery ruin discovered in China to date. It boasts the most complete layout, richest cultural relics, longest usage period and most distinctive local characteristics. It was listed among China’s Top Ten New Archaeological Discoveries of 2002. In 2006, the State Council designated it as one of the sixth batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level.