The fine wine of Shihua wine and the ancient town

Shihua is an ancient town, and the written history in county annals and town annals can be traced back to more than 260 BC.

"Shihua Town" is actually the official name of modern times. In the folk, people have always used to call the ancient town "Shihua Street", and its reputation in history is no less than that of the "four famous towns"-Zhuxian Town, Jingdezhen Town, Foshan Town and Hankou Town. Up to now, merchants from other provinces don't know that there are many people in Gucheng County and Xiangfan City, but few people don't know about "Petrochemical Street".

According to historical records, Shihua Street is famous for its long history and special geographical location. From a historical point of view, this statement certainly makes sense. Before the emergence of roads and railways, Shihua was a key town leading to mountainous areas, Shaanxi, Sichuan, Ningxia and Inner Mongolia-from west to east, Shihua left and entered the beautiful and rich Jianghan Plain, overlooking wuyue and fertile fields in the east; From east to west, after passing Shihua Town, you will enter the continuous mountains and look at Qinba in the west. In Han Long and the Tang Dynasty, Shihua Ancient Town was a strategic hub and material distribution center, whether it was Chang 'an in Xijing or Luoyang in the East. Religious factors cannot be ignored. Wudang Mountain, the holy land of Taoism, is not far from the northwest of Shihua, so the road to the northwest of Shihua is called "Lu Shen". For believers who come from afar to worship their ancestors, Shihua is their last stop. On the eve of the worship, they just rested here for one night, washed away their fatigue, prepared enough incense, and climbed the Jinding in high spirits and joy.

Shihua is also famous, because the ancient town is full of all kinds of magical legends, attracting people of all colors. For example, the four emperors of the Dragon King were ordered to send rain to save the drought, so they were confused by the banshee and missed the mission of the Jade Emperor. He was sent to Xi Shi to beg for rain and peace, while Lu Ban went to the theater in Xi Shi Town. Liu Xiu, Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty, was chased by Wang Mang, fled to Xishi, and was blocked by a deep pool ... There are indeed many physical objects to prove these legends, such as the ruins of Shuangquanjing, which still exists in Shihua Winery, and Luban.

However, the street name of Shihua Town is the most popular, and there are several versions. The usual saying is: Shihua was originally named Xi Shi, and it was named after Xi Shi River flowing through the street. The stone bridge on the river is older than the old street, so old that each bridge column has its own story. This ancient stone bridge is one bow wide and three bows long, and adopts a bluestone structure. There are a variety of patterns on both sides, such as double dragon playing beads, and the top of each column is carved with lotus leaves, which is exquisite and realistic. When there is no bridge deck in summer flood, the lotus on the bridge fence is as amazing as the real lotus in the lotus pond. People changed the name of this street from Xi Shi to Shihua. Another way of saying this is that the Qingshiqiao is very old, and it is pregnant with fairy spirit. The sculpture on the top of the column shines brightly when it sees the sun, and it is as bright as a gem. There is another saying: a column of incense in the bridge is the most magical. On a sunny noon, looking up at the sky through the Shi Lian, you can see a full moon like a golden basin, with stars shining all over the sky. ...

Either way, it is confirmed in * * * that the ancient town once had the spectacle of "jewel blooming", and the name of Shihua Town is therefore widely spread.

Compared with the official history, the legend only adds mystery to the ancient town, and the written history of Shihua Town itself is staggering. In the history of the Warring States, the State of Chu defeated Yong. At the end of Qin Dynasty, Xiang Yu, the overlord of Chu, led an army to crusade against Liu Bang, and chariots and fighters rumbled across the bridge. Standing on the Shihua Bridge, which is still the main throat today, I am still impressed by the sight of "traffic and horses whistling"!

The inner charm of the ancient town comes from the infiltration of wine culture.

A long history and magical legends can certainly add color to ancient towns, but with the development of modern transportation and the rise of new industry and commerce, many famous ancient towns in history have declined one after another because of lack of economic support. For contemporary people, the ancient concept of "four famous towns" that was once famous no longer exists, and many prosperous ancient towns in Xiangfan and even Hubei have long been forgotten by the dust of history. Only Shihua ancient town can cross the long historical time and space and still maintain its former reputation. This special phenomenon has aroused the interest of many scholars, and many economic circles and journalists have conducted special discussions on it. The conclusion is that Shihua Town has always stood at the forefront of reform and developed rapidly with the times. In other words, the prosperity of local industries has promoted the economic take-off of the ancient town, thus making Shihua Town famous. But the residents of this town and those who really understand the history of Shihua Town are unwilling to agree. They believe that Shihua has a long history, but without the famous Shihua Daqu liquor, Shihua Town can't escape the fate of being forgotten. An objective analysis of this view is really convincing. From a purely economic point of view, the splendor of many new famous towns emerging in Guangdong, Zhejiang and other industrially developed areas has already covered the historical traffic status of Shihua famous town and the legendary stories such as "Gem Blossoming". The rapid economic development is of course an important factor that makes Shihua ancient town famous, but the most important reason is the Shihua Daqu liquor series, which has always occupied an important position in the national and provincial liquor industry. Just like Moutai has always maintained the popularity of Maotai Town, the fine liquor produced by Shihua Distillery has been equally divided with Shanxi Fenjiu and other fragrant famous wines from the early years of the Republic of China to the end of the last century, maintaining a stable market share, but its reputation in Hubei Province is even more prosperous, keeping pace with "Bai Yunbian" for a long time, occupying half of the Hubei liquor market. From northern Xinjiang to Coconut Island Hainan, Shihua wine with simple packaging and excellent texture can be seen everywhere; No matter at the banquet in the hotel or at the table of ordinary people, you can smell the mellow wine of Shihua Daqu.