Judges taste beer at the fifth annual China Master Cup home brewing competition led by Gao Yan.

A critical ingredient in that movement is money. The rising disposable incomes of Chinese means the likes of craft beer, wine and Western spirits are becoming more accessible to them. The craft beer trend will be given impetus, too, as more people come across craft beers when they are abroad, either as tourists, as part of their work, or while studying.

“Chinese are very open to new things,” Acker said. “It is not just about craft beer, it is a universal thing to want a better quality of life in every aspect. People are moving toward things like organic food, farmer’s markets, more artisanal products, handcrafted food, and craft beer is just part of it. They want to know where their food comes from.”

So what then is craft beer? In China the definition is hard to nail down. In fact some say it is more a notion than a definition, but there is a consensus that three of the key ingredients are independence, diversity and innovation, something said to be lacking in industrial beers.

Great Leap Brewing, which opened in October 2010, was the first microbrewery in Beijing and has grown from four taps in one place to 60 taps in three places.

Its founder and brewmaster, Carl Setzer from Ohio, said: “The American Craft Brewers Association defines craft beer as brewers that are ‘small, independent, and traditional’. However, unlike many other countries, with long-established brewers’ associations, China has yet to truly define what craft beer is.”

Craft beer is special in a way that it always tends to combine local culture and ingredients. Many a craft brewery in China now is trying to incorporate Chinese elements to the beer.

“Styles of beer have been developed in the West, but we are proud to brew world-class beers that showcase the most unique aspects of China’s rich culinary tradition,” Setzer said.

“We are not re-creating American craft beer in China, but rather creating Chinese craft beer.”

Chinese-style IPA should use all Chinese ingredients, especially all Chinese hops, he said.

For example, Great Leap’s Little General IPA is a unique Chinese-style IPA using 100 percent Chinese ingredients, including whole-flower Qingdao Flower hops from Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Chinese craft beer should include not only Chinese ingredients, but reflect Chinese history and culture as well, Setzer said.

Thus the series of his General IPA’s are named after famous military personnel, including those sanctioned by warlord states, and other beer names at Great Leap are derived from traditional folklore, local history or their Chinese ingredients.

Jim Boyce, a beer and wine connoisseur and blogger in Beijing, said serious Chinese brewers put a lot of effort in what goes into their bottles, so they also care about how to present it to the world.

Boyce said his favorite labels are from Shangrila Beer in Yunnan province.

“The labels feature these colorful artistic images of the local culture around Shangri-La, and that is where Tibet, Yunnan and Sichuan meet. Quite beautiful.

“In Beijing I also like the consistency of style and the clever names of the beers at Arrow Factory. Stuff like Guanxi Pale Ale is very clever.”

At Jing-A Brewing taproom, there is the Airpocalypse Double IPA, meaning the worse the pollution in Beijing becomes, cheaper the beer will be.

Jing-A’s cofounder Acker said: “In a way, I hope doing craft beer can help to tell a different side of a story about China. We are using incredibly interesting Chinese ingredients that have never been experimented with before. So I think a lot of beer fans around the world will be very interested and curious about it. We share a perspective and culture of China to the world.”

His partner Kristian Li said: “It is an opportunity for China to showcase the country’s talent and wealth in ingredients to the world. It is not just made in China, but designed in China.”

As for Gao, he uses special Chinese ingredients such as roasted sweet yam, Tibet barley and Jasmine tea in beer brewing.

The label on his Baby IPA shows a chubby baby holding a big carp in his arms, signifying an auspicious image in China for the Lunar New Year.

“It is not only about introducing the craft beer idea to more Chinese people, but also introducing what typical kinds of craft beer we can make in China to world beer fans.”

For would be craft-beer makers in China, one hurdle is that under current regulations a brewery is not allowed to bottle and sell beer if it cannot produce at least 12,000 bottles of beer an hour, far higher than most microbreweries are producing now.

“There should be no limit on how much great beer a brewery can produce, but expecting a new brand to start at an industrial scale is something that China will have to reconsider as our market expands,” Setzer said.

“If you see a Chinese craft beer in a bottle, it means that it was either a) a special edition, one-time small release (we occasionally do this), b) made through a contract brewery with a large bottling facility and generally little input from the actual craft brewers themselves, or c) produced at a factory in the US.”

Thus most microbreweries serve tap beers on their premises, and you will find local craft beers are mostly in kegs, with few in bottles and cans.

Gao said little governmental attention has been paid to fostering the craft beer industry.

“Our first brewery was shut down by the government. So we turned to use a third-party brewery or, say, a contract brewery, to bottle some of our beers.

“It would be really good for the industry if it got some government backing.”

Contact the writer at dongfangyu@chinadaily.com.cn