"It doesn't matter how good the liquor is. If barrels are not looked after, every drop will disappear," says oak barrel repair master Chen Ching-sheng. "It is the same as a body without a soul. Just empty." Chen has spent more than 40 years maintaining the barrels at the Nantou Winery. He spearheaded the use of local materials, such as narrow-leaf cattails, to make essential repairs to the winery's all-important barrels.