The red tassel he cultivated was designated as the only wine sorghum used in the national liquor Moutai
Persevering for 33 years, a sorghum is a wealthy common people
Correspondent He Chun, intern Zhang Nan, reporter He Xinghui
Tu You can work in the field
The humid air is full of rich aroma. This is Renhuai City, Guizhou Province-the origin of "national wine" Moutai, a famous wine country.
One side raises the other people, and the other makes wine.
In addition to the unique climatic environment of Moutai Town, what makes Moutai's non-reproducible has to mention the glutinous sorghum that is everywhere here.
The flaming tassels, one by one, surging like a wave as the wind blows, beautifully.
These red sorghums have a poetic name-"Hong Yingzi".
For 33 years of persistence, Tu You, the special commissioner for science and technology of Zunyi City and the chairman of Guizhou Hongyingzi Agricultural Technology Development Co., Ltd., was able to find good varieties in the fields and cultivate them into the famous Hongyingzi, which changed in one fell swoop. Renhuainuo sorghum production is not high, and it is designated as the only wine sorghum by the national liquor Moutai.
Therefore, the red tassel also makes the people's life more prosperous.
The red sorghum behind the mysterious Maotai
The wind came to the three next door to get drunk, and opened the bottle after the rain.
The charm of the "national wine" Moutai makes people never hesitate to praise it.
As the so-called "good wine is not separated from red grain", the source of the charm of Moutai comes from a small red sorghum.
"Only red sorghum grown under the unique moisture, soil and climate surrounding the Chishui River can produce excellent quality Moutai. This is one of the reasons why Moutai cannot be replicated. Without it, what is brewed is not Moutai. The taste of wine.” Tu Youneng said, this has almost become the consensus of the industry.
"Guizhou General Records" records: "According to the wine produced in Qian Province, the sorghum from Renhuai Moutai Village is the best." This shows that long ago, the sorghum produced by Renhuai was an excellent raw material for winemaking.
Compared with the northern sorghum, Renhuai sorghum "everywhere, is barren, free from fertility, and stingy in yield." Its growth habit like weeds looks more like a stubborn bear child.
As a raw material for wine making, the total starch content and structure, protein, fat, tannin and mineral content of sorghum directly affect wine quality and yield.
With solid grains, small skins, thick skins, and high starch content, this kind of waxy sorghum, called "Little Red Grain", is very conducive to the multiple rounds of steaming and roasting in the Moutai process, and finally forms the special aromatic compounds and Polyphenols are also important factors for Moutai's elegant and delicate, full-bodied wine and long aftertaste.
However, glutinous sorghum can only grow in the Chishui River Valley and surrounding areas. Although it is the best choice for making Moutai, it has a fatal shortcoming in history: low yield.
It is precisely because the output is too low that the production capacity of Moutai has been severely restricted.
In the 1980s, the country decided to build a sorghum base in Renhuai.
At that time, the per mu yield of Renhuai local sorghum was around 75 kg, which was far from meeting the development needs of Moutai Distillery.
The mission of this base is to improve the quality and output of glutinous sorghum produced in Renhuai and to ensure the supply of raw materials for Moutai.
After graduating from the former Zunyi Agricultural School majoring in agronomy, Tu Youneng, a native of Renhuai, went to work at the local agricultural push station. He quickly participated in the investigation and selection of sorghum varieties resources.
That year, he was 24 years old.
New varieties were bred after 12 years
Under the cold wind and scorching heat, Tu Youneng traveled almost all corners of Renhuai in order to find suitable sorghum varieties.
"I always believe that Renhuai has a long history of planting sorghum and rich local variety resources. Good local varieties can be found, and the yield and quality of sorghum can be improved," he said.
This search has been 12 years long.
Although he also collected more than 160 local high-quality varieties from the fields, Tu Youneng never found the sorghum that made his heart beat. He was really "looking for her a thousand times in his dream".
Working in the field all year round, wind and sun, Xia Lu Qiushuang, Tu You can suffer from rheumatoid arthritis.
In this regard, he said lightly: "It's nothing, this is almost a common problem for all agricultural technicians."
One day in the midsummer of 1999, in Bashang Village, Sanhe Town, Renhuai, Tu Youneng went into a sorghum field again as usual.
Suddenly, a sorghum with a special growth and a large ear shape came into his eyes. "The growth of the sorghum is very different, the ear shape is relatively large, and it looks very strong at a glance!" Tu Youneng said, this discovery made him He was so excited, he quickly took out his camera to take pictures and record.
He said that without persistence, there would be no such major discovery.
After 12 years of hard pursuit, Tu You finally saw the light.
In the summer of that year, Tu Youneng discovered another excellent single sorghum in Hema Town, Renhuai.
In 2000, Tu Youneng used two sorghums called "oxtail mound" and "small red tassel" as breeding materials, and explored the systemic hybrid breeding of new sorghum varieties, and went to Hainan to breed the first generation.
What makes Tu You happy is that during his stay in Hainan, he was fortunate enough to discuss breeding with Academician Yuan Longping at the Nanfan Base and received a lot of guidance.
In 2005, Tu Youneng bred a new variety of Hongyingzi. After testing, the average yield per mu was nearly 400kg, which passed the provincial expert review. In 2008, Hongyingzi was designated as the only wine sorghum used in the national liquor Moutai; 2010 , Hongyingzi became the first sorghum seed in the country to pass the organic product certification.
Behind the long breeding process are hundreds of failed experiments. Although it is very tormenting, Tu You can say that you must get used to sitting on the bench when doing scientific research, and you must not be impatient.
Sorghum has become a pillar industry in local rural areas
As an agricultural technician, Tu You can deeply love this piece of land under his feet.
For him, the happiest thing is to see that the villagers who grow red tassels have increased their income and become wealthy.
Now, in his sixties, he is still running around in the fields.
From July to August each year, sorghum is heading and blooming, and it is the busiest time for Tu Youneng. He plunges into the sorghum field to eat and live with his fellow villagers.
Engage in research and development, do guidance, and hold training courses.
Tu Youneng has never been tired, and his original intentions remain unchanged.
The 147 professional cooperatives all over Renhuai are taking up the backbone of sorghum planting. To provide professional guidance and help to these cooperatives is what Tu Youneng is currently doing.
Tu Youneng's idea is very simple, that is, "to impart knowledge and technology to the villagers as much as possible in words they can understand and in a way they are willing to accept."
He roughly estimated that since 2008, he and his team have carried out 100,000 technical training sessions.
In order to better transform scientific research results, Tu Youneng took the lead in establishing the Renhuai City Red Tassel Sorghum Association.
In order to promote the "Hongyingzi" sorghum planting new technology, he established Guizhou Hongyingzi Agricultural Technology Development Co., Ltd., and also served as the director of Renhuai Hongyingzi Sorghum Research Institute.
“The sorghum has just been harvested, and now it’s warehousing. The harvest is good!” said Tu Youneng. This year, Renhuai has planted 300,000 mu of organic sorghum, with an estimated output of 90,000 tons and an output value of more than 800 million yuan, covering 44,200 people. Household.
The improvement in quality and quantity brought by red tassels is of epoch-making significance in the history of glutinous sorghum cultivation in Renhuai.
It is the red tassel that ensures the safety of the organic raw materials of Moutai Distillery, and is also loved by other sauce-flavored liquor manufacturers.
With the vigorous development of Maotai liquor industry, Renhuai's sorghum industry is also thriving and has become a pillar industry in the countryside.
From grains of red sorghum to a cup of mellow wine, Hongyingzi is responsible for the quality of Moutai on one side and the income guarantee of farmers on the other.
So far, the red tassel series has become the single largest variety of sorghum for wine in the country. It has been promoted and planted more than 15 million mu in Guizhou, Chongqing, Hunan, Hubei, Yunnan and other provinces and cities, and farmers have increased their income by more than 5 billion yuan.
Tu Youneng, who has been dealing with sorghum for half his life, has long regarded Hong Yingzi as his child.
Now, his biggest wish is to bring out more technological experts to pass on the cause of developing new sorghum products and helping farmers increase their incomes.
In Tu Youneng's words, although his energy is not as good as before, his special feelings for red tassels are like sorghum wine, which grows stronger with aging.