Alcohol aged in bamboo for flavour

To the cellar: Chen, 30, carrying a bamboo trunk that has been injected with his alcoholic brew in the Yibin bamboo forest. — AFP

YIBIN: A manufacturer of Chinese liqueurs, Chen Chao wanders through the bamboo-covered mountains of southwestern China’s Sichuan province to his ‘cellar’, where he will check on this year’s prize blend.

In the absence of an oak barrel, the 30-year-old uses live bamboo trunks to age his spirit, a method reputed to confer a unique aroma and even medicinal benefits.