Kweichow Moutai, the Chinese premium alcohol giant, has unseated Johnnie Walker producer Diageo as the world’s most valuable liquor company, propelled by a return of Chinese thirst for its so-called “liquid luxury”, despite President Xi Jinping’s frugality campaign. The distiller of fiery liquor baijiu saw its market capitalization hit a record USD71.5 billion in Shanghai, overtaking Diageo’s market value of USD71.05 billion, according to Thomson Reuters data. Moutai’s share price has nearly quadrupled to CNY389.5 since 2014, making the company the most pricey of China’s 3,100 traded stocks. The other top liquor companies, rounding out the top five, are Constellation Brands of the U.S., Pernod Ricard of France, and Wuliangye Yibin of China. The price of Maoutai’s classic Feitian label has surged from CNY800 to CNY1,300 per bottle, roughly three times France’s Martell V.S. Cognac, and a third of the monthly disposable income of inhabitants in Beijing and Shanghai. “Before, the bulk of Moutai sales came from official banqueting and gift-giving, but now many Chinese middle class are becoming new adherents, according to Zhu Danpeng, Associate with China Branding Institute. The state-controlled brewer, based in the town of Maotai in Guizhou province, has deliberately controlled its output to keep its prices high.