The smoked plum beverage is a favorite drink to relieve the summer heat. The drink is rooted in Peking in public opinion, yet the exact origin remains unknown. Nevertheless, until the middle and late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the sweet and sour smoked plum beverage, made with black plum, had become the most popular seasonal drink in the Peking and Tianjin area, thus giving birth to a unique consumer culture. However, due to the poor sanitary conditions of the smoked plum beverages sold by the street vendors, people often got sick or even died from drinking unhygienic plum drinks. From late Qing and early Republican era, with the awareness of public health and the development of bacterial quarantine technology, the government gradually strengthened the control of smoked plum beverage and other drinks sold in Peking area.