Visitors at the 2015 Brussels international liquor competition held in Guiyang, capital of Guizhou Province. [Photo/IC]

Gloomy domestic liquor market has not stopped Chinese brands of liquor standing out among 1,397 spirits in the 2015 Brussels international liquor competition held in Guiyang, capital of Guizhou Province.

At Wednesday's award ceremony, a total of 169 types of Chinese liquor won medals, making China the biggest winner among 44 countries and regions that attended the 2015 Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, one of the largest annual international liquor competitions.

The event was first held in 1994 and has been hosted by cities such as Lisbon, Maastricht, Bordeaux and Luxembourg.

Guizhou is known as the "hometown of Moutai," which has been considered the country's top liquor brand and status symbol for decades. However, sales of luxury liquor in China declined sharply in recent years amid the ruling party's austerity and anti-corruption drive.

The next competition will be held in Guadalajara in Mexico next year.