Food for the White Dew Solar Term
Clear Tea
"The reeds are lush and green, the white dew becomes frost." When the White Dew solar term arrives, the feeling of autumn deepens. In old Nanjing, people attached great importance to the "arrival" and "departure" of solar terms, gradually forming local customs characteristic of Nanjing.
When it comes to White Dew, old tea-loving Nanjing residents greatly favor "White Dew Tea". At this time, the tea trees have endured the scorching heat of summer, and the period around White Dew is an excellent time for their growth. White Dew Tea is neither as fresh and tender as spring tea, which doesn't steep well, nor as dry and bitter as summer tea. Instead, it has a unique mellow, sweet, and fragrant flavor, especially favored by veteran tea connoisseurs. Furthermore, the spring tea stored at home has mostly been "consumed," and White Dew Tea comes just in time. Therefore, around the time of White Dew, some tea enthusiasts will ask someone to buy some White Dew Tea.
Rice Wine
The areas of Xingning, Sandu, and Liaojiang in Zixing have a long tradition of brewing wine. Every year when the White Dew solar term arrives, every household brews wine. It is a must-have "local wine" when entertaining guests. The wine is warm, slightly sweet, and is called "White Dew Rice Wine". The finest of the White Dew Rice Wines is "Cheng Wine", named for being brewed with water from the Cheng River. Cheng Wine was an ancient tribute wine with a far-reaching reputation. The "Commentary on the Water Classic" records: "In Chenzhou County, there is the Lushui River, which flows from the northwest of Hougong Mountain in the east of the county, then turns south and empties into the Lei River. This is called the Chengshui Stream. The commandery set up a brewery at the foot of the mountain to make wine, named 'Cheng Wine', for offering to the ancestors." Both Lü and Lü wines were renowned wines passed down through generations. The "Book of Jin: Annals of Emperor Wu" states: "Lü and Lü wine were offered in the Ancestral Temple," showing that Cheng Wine must have been comparable to Lü wine. The "Jiuzhi Zhi" also says: "The Chengshui River is in today's Xingning County, Chenzhou. Its source comes from Chengxiang. This water is used to make wine, hence the name 'Cheng Wine', distinct from other wines." Chengxiang refers to the area of today's Sandu and Liaojiang. Zixing was called Xingning from the Southern Song Dynasty to the early Republic of China, hence the reference to "Xingning County of Chenzhou". The brewing of White Dew Rice Wine is quite unique, not only in the choice of water and the timing of the solar term, but also in the method. First, a baijiu (commonly called "tu shao" or local fire liquor) and a glutinous rice lees wine are brewed. Then, in a 1:3 ratio, the baijiu is poured into the lees wine, which is then put into jars to await drinking. To make Cheng Wine, a suitable amount of shanzishui (water made by boiling millet) must be mixed in, then it is sealed in a jar and buried underground or cellared. Some are even buried in fresh cattle manure, and are not taken out to be drunk for several years or even decades. Cheng Wine buried for decades has a reddish-brown color, shows threads when poured, is smooth to drink, has a rich fragrance, and is very potent. The "Xingning County Gazetteer" compiled in the first year of the Guangxu era (1875) says: "Its color is green and its taste mellow, the older the more fragrant," and "It can be brewed for a thousand days, and one becomes drunk upon arriving home."
The "Commentary on the Water Classic" also records a conversation between the Southern Liang dynasty writer Ren Fang and his friend Liu Yao. Ren Fang said to Liu Yao: "They say there is wine that travels a thousand li, must that be an empty boast?" Liu Yao replied: "In Chengxiang, Guiyang, there is a thousand-li wine. One drinks it and only wakes up upon arriving home. This is an example of it." During the Southern Liang dynasty, Xingning belonged to Guiyang Commandery. Among the old Nanjing residents who came from southern Jiangsu and Zhejiang, there was also the custom of brewing their own White Dew Rice Wine. In the past, when the White Dew solar term arrived every year, every household in the countryside of the Jiangsu-Zhejiang area would brew wine to entertain guests, and often people would bring White Dew Rice Wine to the city. White Dew Wine is made from five grains such as glutinous rice and sorghum, is slightly sweet, and is therefore called "White Dew Rice Wine". Until the 1930s and 1940s, Nanjing city's liquor shops still sold bulk White Dew Rice Wine, but it gradually disappeared later on.