In early October the summer heat in Sichuan finally eases, and the scent of osmanthus still hangs in the air. When the National Day holiday arrives, many people head from the city back to their home villages, or gather a few friends at a farmhouse courtyard and set out a table of good food.
From 1999 the National Day holiday was extended to seven consecutive days, and together with the Spring Festival break it became known as a "Golden Week" 1. For more than twenty years these seven days have been more than a travel peak. They are one of the rare times in the year when everyone comes together: young people working far away return home, old classmates meet again, and several generations of a family finally fill one table.
The Sichuan courtyard feast
When it comes to gatherings, Sichuan has its own tradition, the babayan, or courtyard banquet. In the countryside, for a wedding, a birthday, a house-moving or a festival, the host family sets up temporary stoves in the courtyard, lays out rows of square tables, and invites a village cook to take charge, while neighbours, family and friends crowd round. The traditional "nine big bowls" are mostly steamed dishes: savoury and sweet steamed pork belly, rice-flour steamed pork, a steamed medley, carried to the table one steaming bowl after another. Much of what is served comes from the family's own fields and pigsty; a village cook's skill and a host's sincerity make the finest seasoning.
A courtyard feast is about warmth and human connection: generous food, open conversation and a mellow drink. Elders lift their chopsticks first; when younger guests propose a toast they hold the cup with both hands and keep its rim a little lower than the elder's. These unwritten rules pass from one generation to the next, one banquet at a time.
An everyday bottle
Occasions like these do not call for a long-treasured old vintage. They call for something smooth, honest and familiar to everyone at the table. Jin Qifu is Qifu's everyday bottled range, made at the same distillery below the Longmen Mountains in Mianzhu and in the same strong-aroma tradition as the rest of the family's spirits. The Ji family has distilled here since 1978, guided by a motto that puts integrity first.
Beside a table of Sichuan dishes, the caramelised fragrance of twice-cooked pork, the depth of broad-bean paste and the smokiness of cured pork all welcome a glass of strong-aroma baijiu. For friends meeting in the city over hotpot and a few cold dishes, it fits just as well. If the holiday leaves time for a trip, Mianzhu is worth a visit: its woodblock New Year prints are recognised as national intangible cultural heritage, the countryside below the Longmen Mountains is at its autumn best, and a farmhouse courtyard meal with a glass of locally distilled strong-aroma baijiu is the taste of western Sichuan at its most authentic.
Gather well, part well
The point of a gathering is the people, not the drink. Toast as you please, never press anyone to drink and never turn it into a contest. Elders may take only a little; younger guests should know their limits. Friends who are driving can toast with tea, and everyone's way home should be arranged before the table breaks up. Enjoy yourselves without overdoing it, so that tomorrow you can still hike the hills, walk the rice fields or wander an old town together. That is a holiday well spent.
This National Day, may your table hold good food, your glass good wine, and your seats good company.
