“The Spirits Selection by CMB has been at the root of this burgeoning internationalisation of Baijiu”
The city of Renhuai, the birthplace of Moutai-flavored Baijiu production, will host the 26th edition of the Spirits Selection by CMB in September 2024 in the heart of the Guizhou province, China.
The Renhuai Government and CMB have host a press conference of this upcoming edition during Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris. Here are some of the statements from Ulric Nijs, Spirits Selection’s director.
“It is a great pleasure to announce the launch of the 2024 edition of the Spirits Selection by the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles. Spirits Selection by CMB is the market leader in its field, so it is only natural that we pave the way for baijiu appreciation. In 2013, we had a modest two samples. In 2015 we went to China for the first time in Guyan. The number of baijiu samples jumped to an impressive 553. At that time, the word “baijiu” was practically unheard of, except for a few connoisseurs scattered around the world…”
“Since then we have been at the forefront of baijiu appreciation in Europe, if not the world!” “It quickly became known that if you wanted to talk about baijiu, you had to talk to one of our tasters… very few people in the world had tasted as much baijiu as they had! They knew their stuff!”
“In 2019, we returned to China and headed to Lvliang in Shanxi province, collecting an impressive 620 different baijius for the competition! Baijiu was becoming part of the everyday language of the industry.”
“And I firmly believe that in some way, and because of our close ties to China and the baijiu industry, the Spirits Selection by CMB has been at the root of this burgeoning internationalisation of baijiu.
We are on the right track! For the first time since 2020, we should even be able to add a brand new category (Cashews Fenni from Goa) to our already extensive lists of spirits entered each year… Our 33rd category has never been judged internationally before, confirming our position as a truly global competition!”
“It is very difficult not to use superlatives when talking about the Baijiu category:
- It is single-handedly the largest spirits category in the world, outselling whisky, vodka and gin combined!
- In 2022, 26 billion bottles of baijiu have been produced!
- China generated more than €140 billion from its baijiu industry,
- With over 120,000 distilleries scattered across the vast Chinese landmass, the baijiu from these distilleries accounts for an estimated 54% of the value of the global spirits market.”
“Let those numbers sink in!”
Ulric Nijs
Director of Spirits Selection by CMB
