Core Tip: Recently, news of a 3.78 million yuan 'sky-high' aged Moutai being sold on a major online shopping platform has attracted attention and heated discussion among netizens. While marveling at the high price, many have also questioned whether such an expensive aged Moutai is genuine. Recently, news of a 3.78 million yuan 'sky-high' aged Moutai being sold on a major online shopping platform has attracted attention and heated discussion among netizens. While marveling at the high price, many have also questioned whether such an expensive aged Moutai is genuine, and who would authenticate it. Experts from the China Collectors Association remind consumers that the aged Moutai market is a mix of genuine and fake products. Without extensive professional knowledge, one should not easily venture into the aged liquor collection industry to avoid unnecessary financial losses. In recent days, news of a 'sky-high' Moutai being sold on an online shopping platform has gone viral, followed by heated online debate on how to distinguish genuine from fake. On March 30, a Beijing Youth Daily reporter, posing as a buyer, learned from the seller of the 'sky-high' Moutai that they could provide a corresponding authentication certificate. However, after extensive investigation, the reporter found that currently no domestic institution can issue a legally binding authentication certificate for aged Moutai. A Moutai company staff member stated that the company can only authenticate Moutai produced after 2000. Event Online Platform Sells 3.78 Million Yuan Sky-High Moutai, Attracting Attention Recently, a reader reported to the Beijing Youth Daily that a 3.78 million yuan bottle of 'sky-high' Moutai appeared on a major domestic online shopping platform. To verify the claim, a Beijing Youth Daily reporter logged into the platform and searched using 'Moutai' as a keyword. After sorting by price from high to low, the reporter saw that the most expensive item was a 540ml bottle of Guizhou Moutai priced at 3.78 million yuan, equivalent to 7,000 yuan per milliliter. On the product page for this 'sky-high' Moutai, the seller described it as a '1950s', 'high-proof', 'sauce-flavor' Moutai, produced by 'Local State-owned Moutai Distillery', with an age of 'over 58 years'. The reporter entered the store selling this 'sky-high' Moutai and found it specialized in aged liquor. The four most expensive bottles in the store were all Moutai, including the aforementioned 3.78 million yuan '1950s' Moutai, a 2.78 million yuan '1960s' Moutai, a 1.28 million yuan '1960s-1970s' Moutai, and a 550,000 yuan '1974' Moutai. Additionally, all other bottles priced over 100,000 yuan were also Moutai. Soon, the 'sky-high' Moutai sparked heated discussion online. Some netizens commented, 'This is the first time I've seen a 1950s Moutai.' Others questioned, 'How can we authenticate a 1950s aged liquor?' and 'What if we buy a fake at such a sky-high price?' Seller Association Can Issue Authentication Certificate Regarding authenticity, some netizens suggested that the packaging of aged Moutai could be used to judge authenticity. However, this claim was met with rebuttals. Zhang Dongxu (pseudonym), a Moutai collector, told the Beijing Youth Daily that the aged Moutai market is 'deep and murky', with many counterfeiting methods. Not only can bottles be forged and aged, but even if the bottle is genuine, the liquor inside may not be authentic. 'There are too many cases of old bottles filled with new liquor.' In the product images of the 3.78 million yuan 'sky-high' Moutai, the reporter saw that the outer packaging was covered with mottled yellowing marks, with 'Guizhou Moutai' printed on the bottle and 'Produced by Local State-owned Moutai Distillery' in the lower right corner. On the back, a vertical introduction of Moutai was printed, with a blue font at the end reading 'February 8, 1959'. The bottle mouth was slightly protruding and wrapped in a slightly damaged piece of paper, with a faint '贵' character visible. Due to its age, it is difficult to distinguish authenticity through font, color, and other packaging features. So how can the 'sky-high' Moutai be authenticated? The reporter contacted the store salesperson selling the 3.78 million yuan Moutai as a buyer. When asked 'How can authenticity be proven?', the salesperson said, 'We can only guarantee it's genuine; for authentication, you'd have to taste it.' The reporter then expressed a desire for a third-party authentication certificate, to which the salesperson replied that a liquor circulation association could issue a certificate. Association Can Issue Certificate but Not Legally Binding To verify the salesperson's claim, the reporter called the liquor circulation association on the afternoon of March 30. After asking which merchant the reporter intended to buy from, the association staff said that the association could indeed issue a relevant certificate, but since the merchant is a cooperative unit, the authentication work is actually still undertaken by the merchant itself. When the reporter questioned whether such authentication has legal effect, the staff said that currently, certificates issued by the association are not legally binding. If a lawsuit arises over the authenticity of the liquor, these certificates cannot serve as valid evidence. Moutai Company Cannot Authenticate Pre-2000 Products So can Moutai Company, as the manufacturer, authenticate these aged Moutai? The reporter then called the anti-counterfeiting and rights protection service number listed on the official website of Kweichow Moutai Co., Ltd. The Moutai staff first asked about the year of the Moutai to be authenticated. Upon learning it was a 1950s aged Moutai, the staff said they could not authenticate it. 'We can only authenticate Moutai produced after 2000; those before 2000 cannot be authenticated.' The reporter logged into Moutai Group's official mall and saw that the highest-priced single bottle on the platform was a 53-degree 2.5-liter Five-Star Moutai launched for the Chinese zodiac, priced at 39,999 yuan per bottle. The highest price per milliliter was for the 50-year-aged 53-degree 500ml Guizhou Moutai, priced at 18,999 yuan per bottle, about 38 yuan per milliliter. The staff explained that aged Moutai now falls under the category of collectibles, with buying, selling, and pricing spontaneously formed among collectors. Experts No Legally Binding Authentication Institution; Aged Moutai Authentication Difficult Zhang Dongxu, who has collected Moutai for over 20 years, told the Beijing Youth Daily that the Moutai collecting circle is not large, and most collectors focus on Moutai produced after 2000, 'because the unit price is relatively lower, and the entry threshold is lower.' Zhang explained that Moutai collectors are mainly of two types: those who love drinking and sometimes taste their collections, and investment-oriented collectors who wait for appreciation. Collectors of million-level Moutai are extremely rare. Wang Banghua, director of the Tobacco, Alcohol, Tea, and Art Collection Committee of the China Collectors Association, told the Beijing Youth Daily that collecting aged Moutai requires deep expertise. On one hand, the aged Moutai market is a mix of genuine and fake products. 'There are too many fakes; many so-called aged Moutai are 'fabricated'. Experts can tell at a glance that they never existed, but consumers unfamiliar with liquor history are easily deceived.' On the other hand, Wang said that currently, no domestic institution can issue a legally binding authentication certificate for aged liquor. Even aged liquor auctioned at auction houses cannot be guaranteed 100% genuine. 'Most buyers rely on intuition and appearance; some larger merchants rely on credibility, but there is indeed no foolproof authentication method.' Wang told the reporter that tasting the liquor after opening it can basically determine authenticity, but once opened, it affects the liquor's value retention and can easily lead to disputes with the merchant. 'If you open it, unscrupulous merchants might deny it and claim you swapped the liquor.' Wang suggested that consumers and collectors without extensive professional knowledge should not easily enter the aged liquor collection industry to avoid unnecessary financial losses. Source: Beijing Youth Daily -END-