Whisky Culture in Mainland China

At Beijing’s Mix nightclub in 2006, large bottles were reportedly lifted by pulley to fill jugs.[8] The detail comes from an account of Scotch with green tea, a popular Beijing club drink that year. It is a vivid glimpse of whisky finding local uses, from karaoke bars to modern wedding rituals. Locally made malt whisky now adds Chinese oak to the story.[3][10][11]

Whisky remains a small part of a spirits market dominated by baijiu. Its audience, however, reaches well beyond older business drinkers, with trade reporting pointing to a substantial younger following.[8]

Whisky culture in mainland China starts with context

Baijiu is the traditional toast at banquets, weddings and business meetings. The China-Britain Business Council describes it as a sorghum spirit and puts its share of the spirits market at approximately 96%, against whisky’s 1%.[8] Whisky’s growing visibility sits within that much larger drinking culture.

The Scotch Whisky Association reported exports to China of 34 million bottles in 2025, up 14%.[9] These are Scotch export figures, not a measure of all whisky consumed in China. They do not distinguish between bottles mixed in clubs, shared at dinner or poured in specialist settings.

The broader whisky around the world guide explores these distinctions. In mainland China, the most revealing story is how imported whisky has found local uses, while domestic producers have begun giving it Chinese materials, names and places.

Green tea, karaoke and the shared jug

Chivas with green tea is a clear example of whisky acquiring a recognisable local serving style. CNN Travel described it in 2017 as Scotch mixed with sweetened bottled green tea, associated with karaoke bars and nightclubs.[10] The sweetness comes from the mixer: this is not whisky accompanied by a cup of brewed tea.

The China-Britain Business Council looks back to Beijing nightlife in 2006, when the mixture was a popular club drink. Its account of bottles raised by pulley at Mix nightclub captures the atmosphere: conspicuous service, shared jugs and a drink made for company rather than quiet examination.[8]

Verdict: Documented. Chivas with green tea was a Beijing nightclub drink in 2006 and was described in 2017 as a karaoke and nightclub serve.[8][10] Its creator and starting date are not reliably established.

Chivas’s prominence extended beyond that particular serve. The same trade report puts Chivas Regal at nearly 29% of China’s whisky consumption by volume in 2019.[8] That dated brand share helps explain its recurring place in accounts of Chinese whisky culture, without describing the entire market today.

A wedding custom with a modern origin

A couple’s bound hands and a shared Scotch toast make a striking wedding image. Reporting in The Business Times describes this ritual in southern China and attributes its creation to Pernod Ricard.[11] The published account presents a company-created custom, rather than an inherited Chinese wedding tradition.

A modern Scotch wedding toast

Verdict: Documented

Chivas Brothers’ chief executive publicly attributed the ritual’s invention to Pernod Ricard in The Business Times report on wedding rituals and whisky.[11] The bound hands, shared Scotch toast and southern Chinese setting all come from that account. It does not establish when the ritual was created or how widely it is practised.

The report is the earliest known source; its publication date is not documented in the supplied record.[11] The exact last-checked day is also undocumented and needs verification before publication.

Wedding celebrations vary by region. The same reporting describes Guangdong weddings as often stretching across several days and dinners, while lunch banquets are common in Sichuan.[11] The Scotch toast belongs within that varied picture, not in place of it.

Younger audiences, more than one drinking style

An estimated 47% of Chinese whisky drinkers belong to Gen Z, according to the China-Britain Business Council report.[8] That is a trade estimate of whisky’s audience, not a claim that nearly half of all young people drink it.

The figure challenges the familiar image of whisky as principally an older businessman’s drink. Business banquets remain part of the wider spirits story, but younger audiences, karaoke and nightclub service deserve their place alongside them. Whisky need not displace baijiu to develop customs and settings of its own.

Chinese production brings place into the story

Chinese oak, local names and distinctive sites are making whisky more than an imported drink with a mainland audience. The Chuan in Sichuan and YunTuo in Yunnan show international producers rooting production in particular places, materials and cultural references.[2][3][4]

Pernod Ricard says production at 叠川 THE CHUAN in Emeishan began in August 2021, ahead of the distillery’s unveiling on 16 November that year. It names Yang Tao as master distiller and says he worked with the group’s master distillers in Scotland.[2] The account describes an exchange of expertise, rather than a requirement for Chinese whisky to adopt a Scottish cultural model.

The name itself connects the distillery to its surroundings. Pernod Ricard translates 叠 as “rich and layered” and 川 as “river”, linking it with Sichuan. Neri&Hu designed the distillery, where Zhan Wang’s installation Fractal Structure: Infinite Shan Shui stands on site.[2] Language, architecture and art all shape the producer’s presentation of the place.

Pernod Ricard launched The Chuan Pure Malt Whisky on 12 December 2023. Its production account names European and Chinese barley, alongside American, Spanish and Chinese oak. The Chinese oak comes from Changbai Mountain.[3] These material details are producer claims, not independent tasting findings.

Verdict: Disputed. The China-Britain Business Council cites reports that The Chuan includes imported distillate; Pernod Ricard has not confirmed this.[3][8] The earliest source of that claim is not established in the supplied record. Sources: Pernod Ricard, 2023; China-Britain Business Council. Last checked: the exact day is not documented.

Diageo unveiled YunTuo in Eryuan County, Yunnan, on 15 November 2024. The company places the distillery 2,100 metres above sea level and translates “Yun” as clouds and “Tuo” as exploration. It says some spirit matures in Yunnan oak.[4]

The visitor centre gives the international connection a physical form: a 29-metre tower constructed from 1,000 used whisky barrels from distilleries around the world, according to Diageo.[4] Verdict: Documented. The earliest known source is Diageo’s 2024 announcement, which describes both the tower and its barrels.[4] No contrary evidence is recorded in the available evidence, and the exact last-checked day is not documented.

Selected production milestones

Familiar flavours, different materials

At Laizhou, Chinese yellow wine prepares the wood for whisky. The China-Britain Business Council reports that the distillery seasons casks with the wine for about 24 months before using them for whisky.[8]

The report describes the resulting whisky as sherry-like, with a hint of fermented rice, and connects that note with a flavour Chinese drinkers know from cooking.[8] Verdict: Documented. This sensory description comes from the report, not a tasting conducted by this site.[8] The earliest known source is the China-Britain Business Council feature, 2024; no contrary evidence is recorded in the available evidence, and the exact last-checked day is not documented.

These examples point to distinct production choices, rather than one national flavour. Yellow-wine seasoning at Laizhou, Changbai Mountain oak in Pernod Ricard’s account and Yunnan oak at YunTuo each bring different materials into whisky production.[3][4][8] Together, they show several ways Chinese materials are becoming part of whisky’s identity.

Where to go next

• Whisky in Japan: Highball Culture: explore another setting where mixed serves shape whisky culture.
• Whisky in Taiwan and South Korea: continue with two distinct neighbouring whisky cultures.
• Whisky in Southeast Asia: follow the regional picture beyond mainland China.

Sources

2. Pernod Ricard. Pernod Ricard unveils THE CHUAN Malt Whisky Distillery in Emeishan. Producer’s announcement, 2021. https://www.pernod-ricard.com/en/media/pernod-ricard-unveils-chuan-malt-whisky-distillery-emeishan

3. Pernod Ricard. Pernod Ricard Introduces The Chuan: China's first prestige Malt Whisky. Producer’s announcement, 2023. https://www.pernod-ricard.com/en/media/pernod-ricard-introduces-chuan-china-s-first-prestige-malt-whisky

4. Diageo. Diageo Unveils The YunTuo Single Malt Whisky Distillery in China. Producer’s announcement, 2024. https://www.diageo.com/en/news-and-media/press-releases/2024/diageo-unveils-the-yuntuo-single-malt-whisky-distillery-in-china

5. China-Britain Business Council Focus. The long read: The rise and rise of whisky in China. Trade feature, 2024. https://focus.cbbc.org/the-long-read-the-rise-and-rise-of-whisky-in-china/

6. Scotch Whisky Association. Scotch Whisky exports to United States down 15% since tariffs implemented (2025 export figures). Industry body’s export release, 2026. https://scotch-whisky.org.uk/newsroom/2025-export-figures

7. CNN Travel. 18 drinks China can't live without. Travel feature, 2017. https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/china-popular-drinks/index.html

8. The Business Times, Singapore. From wedding rituals to fancy distilleries, Asia is taking over world's whisky market. Published feature, publication date not supplied in the fact sheet. https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/lifestyle/wedding-rituals-fancy-distilleries-asia-taking-over-worlds-whisky-market

This desk-researched article uses the site’s verified fact sheet, distinguishing producer accounts, trade estimates and reported customs; it includes no site tasting or visit.

Last checked: November 2026