The brewing technique of Xiaolian Sweet Potato Liquor in Lianjiang is a representative project of the 7th batch of intangible cultural heritage at the provincial level in Fujian. This crisp, clear liquor retains its unique charm from over 300 years ago. A century ago, it was already sold to Southeast Asian regions such as Malaysia and the Philippines, lingering in the hearts of countless Fujian emigrants and carrying the nostalgia of overseas Chinese.

Lin Zhuohua is the 10th-generation inheritor of the Xiaolian Sweet Potato Liquor brewing technique in Lianjiang. He learned the ancestral "Three Reds, Six Thoroughs, and Three Steams" brewing process from his father since childhood. Lin told reporters that the process requires selecting "red soil-grown, red-skinned, red-fleshed" sweet potatoes, followed by six key "thorough" steps: thoroughly cooking the sweet potatoes, thoroughly scalding the wine vats, thoroughly cooling the boiling water, thoroughly mixing the distiller's yeast, thoroughly settling the distiller's grains, and thoroughly diffusing the aroma. Finally, the liquor undergoes three rounds of distillation and is aged for three years. The resulting sweet potato liquor is cool in nature, fragrant and mellow in taste.

Beyond traditional sweet potato liquor, Lin Zhuohua and his team have innovated based on ancient distilling techniques. Today, Fuzhou's sweet potato-based spirits have expanded to include vodka, whiskey, kaoliang liquor, wine, pomelo wine, green plum wine, and malt liquor. From the local market to the global stage, these products are exported to more than 40 countries and regions, with an annual output value exceeding 200 million RMB.

Lin Zhuohua stated that in the future, he will unswervingly pursue technological innovation, build Fuzhou's sweet potato liquor into a global brand, and help more "Lianjiang-made" products enter the international market to compete globally. (By Wu Shengwei, Li Wanqing, Zeng Jian)