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Baijiu is a widely consumed spirit usually distilled from fermented sorghum. Here the use of other cereal grains (wheat, corn, rice and barley) is compared with sorghum. The concentration of ethyl acetate in spirit made from sorghum was found to be higher than in the spirits made using other grains, whereas the concentrations of aldehydes and higher alcohols were lower. Based on sensory evaluations, the flavours were more satisfactory when sorghum was used for making Baijiu. Of the other cereals, the flavour from wheat was better than those of corn, rice and barley for making Baijiu. The ester concentration of the spirit made from the rice was low, whereas aldehyde and alcohol contents were high. An abnormal flavour was found in spirits made from corn or barley. Further work with sorghum showed variations in tannin content, and a correlation between the tannin content and brewing performance. When the content of tannin was <1.94%, the ethyl acetate and ethyl octanoate content were positively correlated with tannin content. In contrast, the ethyl lactate and higher fatty acid ethyl esters content were negatively correlated with tannin content. The results of flavour analysis and sensory evaluation indicated that the ideal sorghum tannin content for producing Baijiu was between 1.0 and 2.0%. Copyright © 2017 The Institute of Brewing & Distilling