Sichuan Distillery Profile: Mianzhu Family Producer Qifu Lists Europe, Africa and Asia as Export Markets for Strong-Aroma Baijiu

Sichuan Mianzhu Qifu Distillery, a family-run baijiu producer in Mianzhu, Deyang, Sichuan, is one of a small number of mid-sized Chinese distilleries that now list overseas markets alongside domestic bulk and bottled sales. The company states that it ships to Europe, Africa and Asia and maintains a European contact point in Belgium, according to its English-language website at qifujiu.com.

The distillery was built in 1978 on the banks of the Sheshui River in Mianzhu, a city recognised in 2019 by the China Alcoholic Drinks Association as a World Fine Spirits Characteristic Region. A June 2024 profile published by the Mianzhu municipal media centre puts the site at more than 50,000 square metres, with an annual production capacity above 10,000 tonnes of strong-aroma (nongxiang) and light-aroma (qingxiang) baijiu and a cellar stock of aged base spirit also above 10,000 tonnes. The facility includes a qu (starter) workshop, a base-spirit workshop, an automated bottling line and a testing laboratory.

Bottled products are sold under the Qifu and Jinqifu marks, while the Qifu Shaofang brand supplies bulk spirit to a chain of retail outlets in more than ten Chinese provinces. Construction of a visitor winery, Qifu Winery, began in August 2023 to host tours and tastings.

Production follows the traditional Sichuan strong-aroma method: a multi-grain mash is fermented in yellow-mud pits for roughly two months before distillation, a process the company describes in detail on its craft page. Executive director Ji Mingchang has led the distillery for more than 30 years and is a vice-president member of the Mianzhu Liquor Industry Chamber of Commerce; the company joined the Sichuan China Baijiu Golden Triangle Liquor Association in 2018.

For Gulf-based importers and distributors, the company publishes an English product sheet and a distributor enquiry page at qifujiu.com/en/distributors. Spirits imports into the United Arab Emirates remain restricted to licensed importers and distributors under federal and emirate-level rules, so any supply arrangement would run through an existing licence holder.