Kweichow Moutai running out of liquor

Maotai, Guizhou

YOU know you are in Maotai when you smell it. The picturesque town of about 100,000 in south-western China is home to the world's most valuable liquor company - and the soya-sauce-like scent of the Chinese grain alcohol baijiu, made by the eponymous Kweichow Moutai Co, permeates the main street.

But inside the liquor stores along the road, the distiller's main brands are all sold out. Queues form wherever bottles are available. The buying frenzy - and resulting inventory shortages - extend nation-wide.