Chongming Rice Wine, a Chongming local specailty, boasts its uniqueness for the sweet and sour flavor, mellow fragrance, moderate alcohol, as well as strong and lasting aftertaste. In 2008, it was appraised as a "Geographical Indication Protection Product" by the State Administration of Quality Supervision.

Chongming rice wine stands out for over 700-years or more in its traditional brewing techniques. Among other things, rice is the raw material, and when cold water cools the steamed rice, water and yeasts are added to it. This is how the wine is made.

A turn of the Ming and Qing dynasties, there were many wine shops in Chongming. Therefore, it can be said that “three out of ten shops were selling wine at that time”. During the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, Chongming rice wine enjoyed renowned reputation, with increasing varieties. The best-known included “Yellow Cauliflower” and the light-yellow “White in October”, which can be drunk all year round.

Glutinous rice or round-grained rice, yeast and water are the main ingredients of Chongming rice wine.

Chongming rice wine is made by traditional craft, with pithos as the fermentation container and traditional yeast to fermentate. The traditional yeasts include the Chinese yeast and what is called the “eighty-two yeast”, which contains many kinds of microorganisms  beneficial to the brewery process. The Chinese yeast is made by pure rhizopus, while the “eight-two yeast” is a mixture of wine yeasts, water and air. It is made under specific moisture, temperature and ventilation conditions. The naturally bred microorganisms and the local climate play an important role in the fragrance, taste as well as style of the fermentated Chongming rice wine.