World Baijiu Day is August 9. Baijiu is the planet’s most popular spirit—20 billion bottles per year— but largely unknown beyond China.

The current 2018 city list is below. More cities, event details and addresses to come. Click a city to see what’s happening! 

Bangkok | Beijing | Berlin | Buenos Aires | Cambridge | Capetown | Chengdu | Christchurch | Hong Kong | Hunawihr  London | Los Angeles | Marseilles | Melbourne | Milan | Minsk |  New York | Oakland | Paris | Portland | San Francisco | Shanghai | Shenzhen | Singapore |Stockholm | Taipei | Tianjin | Vancouver | Washington

BANGKOK

I listed Bangkok just minutes before publishing this initial city list as former Beijing resident Kirby Carder contacted me and plans to organize an event featuring baijiu flights! More details soon.

BEIJING

CAPITAL SPIRITS

Beijing’s baijiu bar is back for a fourth year. Capital Spirits hosted a baijiu and food pairing in 2015, then a quiz the next two years. The brain teasers, with a focus on baijiu appreciation and history, return for 2018. Answer correctly and you can win free shots, beers and cocktails. In the spirit of Year of the Dog, Capital Spirits will also bring back its Hutong Hound cocktail .

Capital Spirits, 3 Daju Hutong / 大菊胡同3号, 6409-3319

HERBAL

Glenn Schuitman has been a WBD supporter since year one. After a trio of events at Pop-Up Beijing, including global flights in 2015, tea and coffee with Good Works in 2016 and a four-course dinner with Sue Zhou Does Food in 2017, he is moving the party to Herbal, a bar that uses Chinese medicinal ingredients in its cocktails.

Given WBD’s date—8/9—Herbal will do rmb89 deal (rmb120 at the door) for a cocktail and six baijius. Created by Herbal’s A Jian, the Chrysanthemum Terrace is a subtle mix with pear juice and chrysanthemum tea. Baijius includes Taizi (New Zealand), Yimuquan and Yidanliang (Hebei), Fen Chiew (Shanxi) and Jiangxianghe (Anhui).

The cocktail and baijius are rmb89 by RSVP with this QR code, (add a note with your name) or email hello (at) popupbeijing.com. Or show up and pay rmb120. Party officially starts at 8:09 PM but earlier arrivals are welcome.

12 Xindong Road, Shoukai Bojun Compound, South Building No 4, Ground Level, Venue 1-021 (inside the compound courtyard, opposite the Bentley Dealership), Sanlitun, 6415-9954, map

JING-A BREWPUB

After doing brews with Qu, the fermentation agent of baijiu, in 2015 and 2016, Jing-A will shift to cocktails this year. Its Back Bar will feature the Ronaldiño Hat (rmb40), with Hongxing erguotou, tripel sec, lime and Jing-A’s Guava Xanadu beer.

“It’s the list of must-pack essentials for Uncle’s vacation to the tropics,” says Jing-A’s Richard Ammerman.

The bar will also feature Paper Crane from baijiu bar Capital Spirits, with owner David Putney on hand to make it. That one has baijiu, Amaro Montenegro and Aperol and lemon. If that’s not enough, there will also be samples of Ming River baijiu.

Jing-A Brewpub, The Back Bar, 57 Xingfucun Zhong Lu

SCHOOLHOUSE AT MUTIANYU

Long before WBD began, Jim Spear and the team at The Schoolhouse were making baijiu liqueurs, all within view of the Great Wall. Guests enjoyed samples of those liqueurs for WBD 2015, with cocktails added in 2016 and 2017.

This year, chief mixologist and baker Randhir Singh has created three specials: the Five Spices Alive cocktail; an iced coffee with house-made baijiu liqueur; and a lemon meringue tart flambeed with “white lightning” aka baijiu. Check those out as well as this post with Jim Spear about the liqueurs.

Beigou Village,  6162-6506, info (at) brickyardatmutianyu.com

THE TIKI BUNGALOW

The Beijing “hair of the dog” for World Baijiu Day will come courtesy of Tiki on August 11. After two years of featuring the 1930s-inspired baijiu cocktail Goodbai Fu Manchu, the team at Tiki is jumping ahead a few decades.

The Canton Curfew #46 is a variation of a drink from the 1960s, says co-owner Oliver Davies. This mix of Bourbon, passion fruit, lemon juice and a dash of grenadine get its baijiu influence from a float of fruity Yidanliang erguotou. Available August 11 through August 20.

34 Jiao Dao Kou San Tiao, Beijing, 158-1051-1562

W LOUNGE

The W Hotel in Beijing has been home to numerous tasty baijiu cocktails over the years and will highlight one titled 京味儿Jing Style for World Baijiu Day on August 9. This cocktail, created by W Lounge head mixologist Seven He, it has a base of erguotou infused with fresh ginger. Added to this are Grand Marnier, homemade Beijing plum soup, pineapple juice, hawthorn syrup and lime Juice, all topped with soda water, for a fresh and complex drink. Get it at W Lounge from 6 PM to 1 AM for rmb98.

BERLIN

LE COQ BAROQUE

The first German venue to join WBD, Berlin-Kreuzberg bar Le Coq Baroque will four baijiu cocktails as well as shots and food pairings, first on the terrace and later inside. Carolin Beutel created signature drinks for this event, including a tiki-style concoction with coconut water and pineapple-mint shrub, a spicy short one with plum wine, a floral drink with sake and an aromatherapy theme, and a playful creation called Panda’s Delight’. Guests welcome from 7 PM until late.

Le Coq Baroque, Grimmstrasse 24, 10967 Berlin, Germany, 030-9404-6616

BUENOS AIRES

430 | 四三〇 Ramen & Drinks

The first South American venue to join World Baijiu Day, this Asian fusion restaurant hosted a tasting of Luzhou Laojiao, ByeJoe, Hong Xing and more last year. Plus the cocktail Sheng Long Island, with baijiu, pisco, soju, sake, triple sec, raspberry syrup and lemon juice. Look for another fun tasting this year.

430 / 四三〇, 430 San Martin, map

CAMBRIDGE

SUMIAO HUNAN KITCHEN

Expect hot stuff with Sizzling Baijiu Shrimp ($30) from August 6 to August 12 at Sumiao Hunan Kitchen. Prepped table-side on a hot plate loaded with shrimp, splashed with baijiu and oil, and covered for a minute. The shrimp are then drizzled with a soy sauce, scallions and pepper sauce. HKB and Jiannanchun by the glass; Moutai, Wuliangye and Luzhou Laojiao by the bottle; and baijiu cocktails also available.

Details: 270 Third Street, Cambridge, MA, (617) 945-0907. Sunday-Wednesday, 11 AM-11 PM, Thursday to Saturday, 11 AM-12 AM.

CAPETOWN

Planning is under way for the first WBD event in Africa! Details to come.

CHENGDU

CUBE BAR

Jordan Porter of Chengdu Food Tours put his city on the WBD map last year with a class at Yi Jie Cafe, a pop-up bar at Bird’s Nest 1 and the launch of a baijiu club. This year, Chengdu Food Tours is back, this time with a night of fun at Cube Bar in the Fairmont Hotel.

From 8 PM to 10 PM, Cube Bar will have a baijiu tasting, trivia and mystery prizes, plus a quartet of cocktails. Those include One Night in Chengdu, with Sichuan peppercorn and grapefruit, and a special recipe, with cranberry, citrus and egg white, to celebrate the one-year anniversary of Chengdu Baijiu Club. (More cocktail details here.)

Tickets are rmb80 for club members, rmb120 for nonmembers, and include the tasting and one Cube Bar special baijiu cocktail. RSVP via anita (at) chengdufoodtours.com. The dress code is smart casual. Also, check out this post with Jordan Porter’s advice on infusing baijiu.

Cube Bar (Fairmont Hotel), 四川省成都市武侯区天府大道中段269号成都棕榈泉费尔蒙酒店

CHRISTCHURCH

SISTER KONG

Ben Lu and Sam Lu of New Zealand baijiu producer Taizi have been supporters of WBD since year one. They have teamed up for fun events with restaurants like Pot Sticker Dumpling Bar and Sister Kong Bao House. This year, they are back at Sister Kong for a baijiu tasting, cocktails and food pairings. Also see here for an interview with Taizi’s Ben Lu.

HONG KONG

More details soon. This event is on hold

HUNAWIHR

This village on the Alsace wine route in France might seem like the least likely place (so far!) for a World Baijiu Day event. But chef Frédéric Muller, with a decade of working for restaurants and hotels in China, plans to put his skills to use to marry baijiu with the local cuisine, including flambéd tarts. More details to come as Muller completes fine-tunes his recipes.

LONDON

Demon, Wise & Partners

Paul Mathew has worked with baijiu for a decade, including during a stint in Beijing, and has participated in WBD since 2015. He has hosted WBD events at two bars he co-owns, The Hide Bar and Demon, Wise & Partners, and the later will feature a pair baijiu cocktails this year. One has strong-aroma baijiu HKB , Wild Turkey, spiced syrup, Cynar and artichoke soda for what Mathew calls a “sweet-savoury highball that’s quick to make and refreshing”. The other will have light-aroma baijiu TAIZI (太紫) from New Zealand, with the recipe soon to come.

Demon & Wise, 27A Throgmorton St, 3774- 7654, wise (at) demonandwise.co.uk, M-F, 5 PM-late.

LOS ANGELES

PEKING TAVERN

Co-owners Andrew Chiu and Andrew Wong have supported WBD since day one. In 2015, they launched the winning recipe—a baijiu sour—from an in-house cocktail contest. In 2016, they featured drinks and snacks. And last year, they turned up the heat with a cocktail that included Luzhou Laojiao and fresh chili peppers.

This year, Peking Tavern will feature braised beef shank with baijiu flight, including Taizi, HKB and Ming River. Plus, all baijiu cocktails will be $8!

Peking Tavern, 806 South Spring Street. 213-988-8308.

MARSEILLES

Speakeasy Carry Nation returns for a third year, following up on last year’s “Moutai goes Tiki” theme that saw three bartenders each design a tiki cocktail with baijiu. Carry Nation’s Guillaume Ferroni followed that with a Moutai master class.

This year’s theme is Moutai & Marseilles and will include three cocktails made with different vintages of Moitai–2017, 2016 and 2015–as well as local spirits. Each cocktail be paired with a shot of baijiu from the vintage used. Try them August 9 through August 11.

Also, on August 11 at 5 PM, Ferroni will host a Moutai master class that includes a tasting of 15-year-old baijiu.

Carry Nation, see website for address.

Meanwhile, sibling venue Bar Dans Les Arbes, a “tree bar” near Marseilles, will be serving a Moutai and Gin Summer Punch. Stop by and get a glass!

Bar Dans Les Arbres, see website for more details.

MELBOURNE

GOLDEN MONKEY

Andrew Ong and his team have featured a baijiu-inspired cocktail each year since WBD started, including the Secret of the Golden Flower. This year’s WBD will happen in a fully renovated Golden Monkey, one that includes a new bar called East China Trading Company upstairs.

Golden Monkey, Rear 389 Lonsdale Street. 9602-2055 / info (at) goldenmonkey.com.au.

MILAN

Luca Barbieri has organized events the past two years, with a focus on pairing baijiu with food. Last year’s event, at dim sum restaurant Ghe Sem, also featured Moutai-based cocktails. More on Barbieri’s plans soon.

MINSK

MAKE MAKE TIKI KING

Steve Wang at WE Brewery in Tianjin has been a strong supporter of World Baijiu Day and a vacation this year in Minsk is not slowing him down. In what we’re calling Operation GanBeilarus, Wang hand-carried three different baijius to Minsk and will team up for a night of samples and cocktails with Evgeniy Kuznetsov of Make-Make Tiki King. Starts at 4 PM! Also check out a recent Q&A with Wang here.

NEW YORK

A new cocktail menu launch here includes a baijiu recipe: Terracotta Navy by Patrick Smith. The tangy concoction is a a twist on the whiskey sour and features lemongrass, Sichuan peppercorns, orgeat, and Ming River. Check it out on August 9.

The Modern, 9 West 53rd street, New York 10019, 212-333-1220

GENERAL DEB’S

Check out two baijiu cocktails at General Deb’s from August 6 to August 10. The World Baijiu Day special features Ming River, orgeat, lime, Amaro Montenegro, tiki and Peychaud’s bitters. Meanwhile, a permanent baijiu cocktail on the menu includes Ming River, Dolin dry, Cocchi Americano, jasmine and rose water.

General Deb’s, 24 Irving Avenue Brooklyn, New York, 11237, 718-417-3300

OSAMIL

Korean gastropub Osamil will serve up a tiki-style cocktail with a spicy bite for World Baijiu Day. The Mean Ming Machine features Ming River baijiu, Plantation pineapple rum, lime, watermelon, pineapple tincture and Thai chili syrup. Get yours on August 9.

OAKLAND

HELLO STRANGER

A newcomer in uptown, Hello Stranger is into the World Baijiu Day spirit. The Chinatown Gin Swizzle is a cocktail made for a 209 gin competition. Along with the gin in question, it includes Ming River baijiu, black cherry syrup, jasmine green tea, orange blossom water, wild cherry extract, orange bitters, Sichuan peppercorn and red plum. It’s served with dragon fruit, orange peel snake and a fortune cookie. Lots going on it that one!

1724 Broadway

PARIS

LULU WHITE

Inspired by New Orleans music and culture, and named for one of that scene’s most colorful characters of a century past, Lulu White will feature six concoctions by Ben Cooper for World Baijiu Day. The JiuColada is a mix of baijiu, dark rum, cafe absinthe, coconut cream and banana syrup. Meanwhile, rye meets baijiu in The Sunset Park and then teams up with grappa in the Treacle Sour.

PORTLAND

DANWEI CANTING

Portland Distillery VINN is the sole baijiu producer in the U.S., and Michelle Ly and Vicki Ly have been WBD supporters since 2015, including with a plug on local TV. Last year, Vinn teamed up with restaurant Danwei Canting for World Baijiu Day and it looks like a repeat is in the works!

Vinn, 222 Southeast 8th Avenue, 503-807-3826

Danwei Canting, 803 Southeast Stark Street. 1-503-236-6050. Opens at 11 AM.

SAN FRANCISCO

ALCHEMIST

Check out the cocktail Jewel of Ming River at Alchemist, a place described as having a “steampunk decor and speakeasy feel.” The recipe includes baijiu, banana liqueur, Jiamica syrup, Krogstad Aquavit and lemon, with rosemary garnish. Served in a coupe glasse.

679 3rd Street (between Brannan and Townsend), San Francisco, 415-746-9968

WOODBURY BAR

Chill out at the Woodbury Bar on World Baijiu Day with a baijiu slushie! This drink includes Ming River baijiu, silver tequila, pineapple, passion fruit, citrus and Chareau, a cool aloe liqueur that includes fruits and botanicals. Try it from 4:30 PM until close.

Woobury Bar, 685 3rd Street, San Francisco, California, 415-475-9398

SHANGHAI

COBRA LILY

Shanghai’s own Boxing Cat Brewing and Cobra Lily will be putting the spotlight on a baijiu cocktail that features craft beer. More details soon.

LA GALERIE

While usually focused on wine, and cool climate ones at that, La Galerie is turning its sights to baijiu this Thursday. Attendees can compare and contrast three styles of baijiu as part of a blind tasting, says Lionel Le Gal. The tasting is rmb88 and RSVP is essential

Le Galarie, 1 Fenyang Road, Shanghai, 159-0064-9246

LOGAN’S PUNCH

Logan Brouse is bringing WBD to his bar—described as a place to “get good and drunk the old fashioned way”—for a third straight year. Expect the usual potent concoctions courtesy of Brouse. Check out this Q&A with him.

Logan’s Punch, Unit 202, 2F, 99 Taixing Road, near Wujiang Road

SHENZHEN

THE COMPASS BAR

The team at Shenzhen bar Compass put their mixology skills to use for a menu with no fewer than five cocktails for World Baijiu Day. From the Baijiu Bang (above) to the Firecracker to the Gogo Berry, cocktail fans have plenty from which to choose. Even better, this World Baijiu Day lineup will be available from August 2 through August 9. See full details about the drinks here.

The Compass Bar. 中国深圳市福田区福华五路皇岗商务中心四十层4002室, 755-8270-7559

SINGAPORE

HANAMCO

Isz Valentino, a finalist in the Lion City Baijiu Cocktail competition held in Singapore, is participating in World Baijiu Day this year! As head mixologist at Hanamco, Valentino has some tasty options for baijiu explorers. That includes a concoction called Green Light District. This one features Moutai along with French liqueurs Pages Verveine Du Velay and Salers Gentiane, Champagne, Cordial, Lime and Salt.

Hanamco, 5 Changi Village Road

STOCKHOLM

STIKKI NIKKI

Stockholm popped up on the World Baijiu Day map last year when Ludvig Sääf and Jiuxian (酒仙), a society to promote Chinese drinking culture in Scandinavia, paired three baijius with a 16-course Chinese dinner. This year Jiuxian is teaming with gelato maker Stikki Nikki to create baijiulato

“Baijiu + gelato = Baijiulato!” says Ludvig Sääf. “On the morning of August 9th, Stikki Nikki will make three different gelatos, flavored with Moutai, Shui Jing Fang and Red Star respectively.”

The plan is to serve the gelatos in Stikki Nikki stores at Götgatan, Gamla Stan and Drottninggatan during the afternoon. Anyone at a store where Mr Lu of Jiuxian society is doing scooping can get a free serving by saying the code word ‘Jiuxian’.

SYDNEY

KWEICHOW MOUTAI SHOWROOM

Imogen Hayes and the team at the Moutai Showroom have been part of World Baijiu Day since the first year, starting with an “Art of Baijiu” event that included a cocktail-making session and food pairing. Look for Sydney to get into the spirit again this year.

Kweichow Moutai Showroom, 2/398 Sussex Street.

TAIPEI

R&D

An original World Baijiu Day partner, Spencer Huang says R&D cocktail lounge will be back for a fourth straight year. This year’s feature drink is Yangmei Spritz, a cocktail Spencer Huang says is refreshing, fruity and perfect for beating the summer heat.

“The sweet and tart yangmei, otherwise known as Chinese strawberry or treeberry, is a natural pairing for the Kaoliang baijiu spirit,” says he.

R&D, 36 Jiaxing Street

TIANJIN

WE BREWERY

Steve Wang gave his craft beers a baijiu float in 2016 courtesy of plum and cranberry infusions. A year of aging gave those infusions a new dimension in 2017. “The flavor is much more rich and intense,” he says. “I tasted it a of couple days ago and it was the bomb.”

Now he plans to take those experiments to the next level with a merger of craft beer, baijiu and juice. To sweeten the deal, this limited baijiu cocktail will on be available on August 9, for just 25 rmb per glass

WE Brewery, 4 Yiheli, Xi’an Dao, Heping

HYATT REGENCY TIANJIN EAST

Another World Baijiu Day, another baijiu-inspired dish! The Hyatt Regency will feature a baijiu-inspired Argentine prawn recipe (矿盐生烤火焰虾). It will also offer a 20 percent discount on all Tianjin baijius on August 9. More details to come.

Hyatt Regency, 126 Weiguo Road, Hedong District, 22-2457-1234

RITZ-CARLTON

The Ritz-Carlton is back and this year is featuring a baijiu cocktail called “Rose Rose” as well as a fruit infusion in Flair.

The Ritz-Carlton, 1F, 167 Dagubei Road, Heping District, 22-5809 5182

VANCOUVER

THE KEEFER BAR

Canada’s sole baijiu producer, Dragon Mist, is partnering with contemporary cocktail venue The Keefer Bar in Vancouver for World Baijiu Day. Keefer, which also joined the first WBD in 2015, will feature a Dragon Mist cocktail as well as tasters on August 9. Get down to Vancouver’s Chinatown for some baijiu and maybe for some BLT baos and Peking duck tacos, too! The bar is open from 5 PM to 1 AM, with happy hour from 5 PM to 7 PM.

Dragon Mist is made in the Greater Vancouver area by owner and distiller Sherry Jiang. She uses local ingredients—wheat from nearby Dawson Creek, water from Canada’s glaciers—to create a spirit with a 56% alcohol punch. Check out Dragon’s Mist entire product line here.

The Keefer Bar, 135 Keefer Street, Vancouver Chinatown, 604-688-1961, info (at) thekeeferbar.com

WASHINGTON

TIGER FORK

David Zhou of U.S. baijiu brand Confucius Wisdom has been organizing WBD events in the Washington, D.C. area since 2015 and is bringing the party to the heart of the city this year. Tiger Fork will feature baijiu drinks with goji and ginseng, with star anise, vanilla and lemon, with Sichuan peppercorn, bird’s eye chili and lime, and with Asian candies. There will also be infusions and 200 ml bottles of Confucius Wisdom. Also check out this write-up about our meet-up in Beijing last year.

922 North Street (Rear), NW, Blagden Alley, Washington, DC 20001

This list will include more cities and event details as we near World Baijiu Day on August 9. Our main theme is “beyond ganbei”, to explore baijiu through cocktails, infusions, flights, foods and more. Want us to join us? Please post your event details here or contact me at spirit (at) worldbaijiuday.com.

WBD is also on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. And check out my China wine site Grape Wall and nightlife site Beijing Boyce.