01.30.08
Posted in Jim Boyce, Media - foreign at 6:57 pm by admin
- By Jim Boyce
According to AFP, it appears Longhai International Trading Company is the first Chinese firm to purchase a Bordeaux winery.
The deal, announced Tuesday, to buy the 60-hectare chateau for an undisclosed sum, which was signed January 24, looks to be the first ever French wine estate purchase by Chinese buyers.
“It is a real Walt Disney kind of chateau, about 500 years old, and the name Latour makes you think of one of the first class growth wines of the Medoc,” said Daniel Carmagnat, director of the Bordeaux property agency A2Z, which sold the property.
Reportedly, the Qingdao-based company will get a 30-hectare operation that produces 160,000 bottles a year.
“This is essentially a prestige purchase,” added Thomas Jullien, director of marketing for Asia at the Bordeaux Wine Board (Conseil interprofessionnel des vins de Bordeaux, CIVB).
Permalink
11.15.07
Posted in Media - foreign at 5:59 pm by admin
Timeout magazine will publish a wine guide. Gabe Suk, who writes the wine column for the magazine’s Beijing edition, is heading up the project. Expect also to see a number of wine books appearing in the market, including several bilingual (English / Chinese) one as well as some Web sites focused on wine. More on these projects to come.
Permalink
10.13.07
Posted in Catai, Face, Grace, Media - foreign, Sequoia Cafe, Tastings at 5:59 pm by admin
I spotted yet another place selling Grace wines in Beijing - upscale Face has the entry-level Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon for 220 per bottle (about four times retail) and the Tasya’s Reserve (I think it was the Cabernet Sauvignon) for 350 kuai. Face also has Catai Chardonnay at 220 per bottle.
Praise from England as the most recent Financial Times column by Jancis Robinson lists Grace under “Fine wines from unexpected sources”:
Grace, Chairman’s Reserve Merlot/Cabernet 2004.
The finest wine so far made in the country that is already the world’s sixth most important grower of grapevines even though eastern China tends to be a bit too damp and western China a bit too cold for viticulture. This one comes from the middle, south of Beijing.
Finally, a while back Sequoia Café held a tasting of five Grace wines. Here are some comments from 25 fellow imbibers, who range from those in the wine industry to those who enjoy wine as a hobby. I’ve included my own takes.
Chardonnay Premier 2003: “A good basic white with a little bit of fruit”; “I like it, it’s nice”; “That’s a decent Chardonnay”; “It’s got a bit of tartness”; “Tart and short”; “Too old - when it’s too old, you begin to feel too much oak”; “It’s drinkable”; “It’s like a cheap Californian wine, a bit fruity and light, and I like that.” My take: I heard the second bottle was better, but found this one too tart and prefer the entry-level Chardonnay from 2005 and 2006.
Cabernet Sauvignon 2005: “Rename it an exit [rather than an entry-level] wine. I found it a bit insipid”; “It’s a lot better than what else you can get from China for 60 kuai”; “This is the best one tonight.” My take: With some cherry on the nose, this is a light-bodied drinkable wine that offers good value for the price - one of my two favorites on the night.
Cabernet Merlot (I didn’t catch the year; I’ll post it later): “An interesting one - the Cabernet was there but I couldn’t find any Merlot”; “The fragrance is okay, the nose fuller than the Cabernet Sauvignon, but it’s a little bitter in the mouth”. My take: The nose was fruitier than the Cabernet Sauvignon, though the body had less fruit than I expected. This one grew on me and I’ll be giving it another try.
Merlot: (again, I will post the year soon): “Some crispness, but they could’ve done more to get the acid down”; “this one is bad”; “no”. My take: The body was rough and unstructured, making it the least pleasant wine of the night.
Deep Blue: “A bit heftier and bigger [than the others] but it seemed pretty young”; “[A shrug of the shoulders]”; “This one is interesting, there’s a lot going on there”. My take: A fruit-driven nose and body that seems like ilike it needs a few years to mature, it’s bigger on the nose than in the mouth. At RMB 288, it’s not cheap.
I’m a fan of Grace, but I think this tasting would have been better with a more recent Chardonnay and by replacing the Merlot with the Cabernet Franc, one of the winery’s better products.
Permalink
07.07.07
Posted in Grace, Media - foreign at 3:58 pm by admin
Yesterday, I emailed Grace Vineyard President Judy Leissner with five quick queries and the answers were back faster than it takes for a bottle of wine to breath. I’ve been a Grace fan since trying the Cabernet Sauvignon at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Beijing last fall. It fared well in my first blind tasting of Chinese wine - we’ll soon see how well it does against Dragon Seal, Huadong and others.
The interview…
BB: I understand demand for Grace wines is growing faster than what the vineyard can produce, so grapes are being brought in from outside. If so, how does Grace balance quantity and quality?
JL: First of all, the percentage of grapes purchased from nearby vineyards is quite small. Secondly, the vineyards are relatively close to our existing premise. As a result, we can monitor the development and check the vineyards prior to harvest. Finally, the grapes are selected and only those that meet our standard would be purchased.
BB: Why did Grace locate in Shanxi?
JL: We believe that only places above the Yellow River are suitable for growing grapes. The east coast is far too humid and, as a result, the sugar [in the grapes] is pretty low. The far west is high in sugar, but low in acidity. So, it’s logical deduction that Ningxi, Shanx and Shaanxi would be the best provinces. Of course, we also hired French professor D. Boubals, the teacher of Miguel Torres, to come to China, and he picked Shanxi over the other provinces.
BB: What is your vision for where Grace should be in 20 years?
JL: I see Grace continuing to be a relatively small operation, but we will have several small wineries across China. Each will have its own unique style and grow different varieties. I also hope we can find a place to grow Pinot Noir in China (ha ha… personal preference). Lastly, I hope we are able to find the most suitable variety for China, similar to Shiraz for Australia, Malbec for Argentina, and so on.
BB: How do I know a wine is truly made with 100-percent Chinese wine, i.e. are there such rules re labeling and, if so, are they enforced?
JL: Ha ha, please ask our government.
BB: What are your three favorite Grace wines?
JL: I think my taste has evolved over time. For example, I used to like our entry-level Chardonnay very much, but now, I prefer our Tasya’s Reserve Chardonnay. Of course, it’s also affected by the food and the company. Right now, I like our premium unfiltered Pinot Noir (ok, it’s not the best, but I enjoy it), our Chenic Blanc (very acidic and fresh, it goes very well with Cantonese food) and finally our Deep Blue (which is a similar but younger blend of Chairman’s Reserve). We haven’t launched Deep Blue yet, but have been drinking it constantly. That’s the nice thing about having a winery, isn’t it?
Note: Grace wines are available in Beijing from Torres.
(Originally posted on April 11, 2007, on www.beijingboyce.com)
Permalink
06.28.07
Posted in ASC Fine Wines, Decanter at 6:40 pm by admin
ASC Fine Wines‘ Don St. Pierre Jr joins Robert Parker, Richard Sands, Miguel Torres and other global wine players in Decanter magazine’s “2007 Power List.” St. Pierre, who established ASC with his father Don Sr 11 years ago, ranks number 37 on the list of those deemed to have the greatest impact on what people are and will be drinking. He’s the only China-based person, and only one of three in Asia, to make the top 50 (the magazine somehow overlooked yours truly). I interviewed him by email over the weekend…
How does it feel to make that list?
It is a great honor for our company as a whole as well as an indication of how important the world thinks the market for wine in China will one day become.
ASC’s business is in China and you’re the only China-based person to make the list, yet your company doesn’t distribute any Chinese wines? What’s up with that and what’s your take on Chinese grape wines?
The list is about the companies and people that influence what wines are available and consumers’ perceptions of wine - this covers importers, distributors, wineries, winemakers, government, and wine writers. ASC is a wine importer and distributor, so I assume Decanter feels that since we are the largest importer in a market that will one day become a significant consumer of imported wine, what we do now and in the future will influence what consumers drink.
Chinese grape wine quality needs to improve, but there are signs that it is happening. And it will happen more and more, because consumers will demand better and better quality wine, and the companies that can produce that wine will find they have more and more customers.
It seems as though there is an increasing amount of Australian wine in China. Which country’s wine producers are coming on strong, which are stagnating and which are losing out?
France is still the overall leader, but as you point out, Australian wine exports to China are growing quickly. It is however important to note that most of the Australian export boom to China is made up of very inexpensive wines. Of all the important wine-making regions, I think America is stagnating or growing the least versus where it should be.
What are the three most important things to realize about marketing to wine consumers in China?
Focus your efforts on sales channels likely to have consumers interested in and able to purchase the wine you are selling - i.e. wine tastings on Nanjing Xi Lu during Chinese New Year with one million people walking by are not a good idea.
Remember that wine consumers in China are just beginning to understand the basics about wine, so keep your message simple and try to ensure it conveys something the consumers can easily identify with - i.e. don’t compare a wine’s taste to saddle leather or black cherries.
Wine and food cross-marketing / promotions can work.
Not counting the people in the top 50 whose products ASC distributes, which three on that list would you most like to sit down with a bottle of wine, and why?
Richard Sands - from 1991, his company went from a little over 100 million in sales to, in 2007, over 5 billion in sales.
Mel Dick - he runs the most successful wine distribution company in the world, bar none.
Dan Jago - largest buyer of wine in the world (Tesco) and his company is moving into China.
Permalink