World Baijiu Day promotes Chinese liquor

The fifth World Baijiu Day falls on Friday - the pronunciation of the numbers "eight" and "nine", representing the date, is similar to that of baijiu, or white liquor.

This year, pubs, bars and restaurants in over 30 cities around the world, including Beijing, Shanghai, London and Stockholm, are celebrating the festival with baiju-inspired cocktails, infusions, liqueurs, gelatos, chocolate and pizza.

Canadian Jim Boyce, who has lived in Beijing for over a decade, launched World Baijiu Day in 2015 to promote the liquor’s culture outside China.

"China's national spirit, baijiu, represents about one-third of global spirits’ sales but is little known beyond its home base of China. World Baijiu Day aims to change that with events in dozens of cities," said Boyce, a consultant in the wine business.