Grape Wall of China

A China Wine Blog: The Scene in the World’s Largest Market

Cars, Broads & Wine: ASC founder Don St. Pierre Sr. to speak at Capital Club

Posted on | October 22, 2009 | No Comments

grape wall of china asc fine wines founder don st pierre sr book cars broads and wine-

Don St. Pierre Sr., founder of China-based importer and distributor ASC Fine Wines, will speak tomorrow at a CEO luncheon at the Capital Club in Beijing on the topic of “Cars, Broads & Wine“. Numerous sources say St. Pierre plans an autobiography of the same name.

St. Pierre founded ASC in the mid-nineties and, after struggles in the early years, built it into a leading wine importer and distributor in China with his son, Don St. Pierre Jr. He was a key figure in a previous book – Beijing Jeep by Jim Mann – due to his involvement in China’s car industry in the eighties.

Note: The event is already sold out.

Category: Uncategorized

Vins & Australie en Chine: une présence à tous les niveaux

Posted on | October 13, 2009 | No Comments

Note: This is a translation by Nicolas Carre of an article by Jim Boyce that originally appeared in English here on Grape Wall.

Australie fait un veritable bond sur la scène du vin en Chine

Tout d’abord, l’Australie a maintenu une présence stable en restant ces cinq dernières années le numéro deux des importateurs de vins embouteillés (en volume), avec 20 à 22% des parts du marché (source : douanes chinoises). Sur les six premiers mois de 2009, l’Australie n’est devancé que par la France (leader avec 40% des parts de marché), a importé deux fois plus en volume que les États-Unis et trois fois plus que l’Italie et le Chili réuni…

Ensuite, l’Australie a fait de gros effort pour changer son image de producteur de vins bon marché à celle de producteur de vins de styles et haut de gamme. J’en veux comme temoin le fameux Landmark Australia auquel j’ai assisté a Pekin et qui était un évenèment de premier ordre, admirablement organisé… On y trouvait pele-mele : 1) d’excellents orateurs comme Paul Henry et Andrew Caillard; 2) des distributeurs de vin, consultants, ecrivains, bloggeurs, et 3) des produits impressionnants – de Henschke Hill à Penfold’s Grange en passant par Bass Philip Premium Pinot Noir.

Enfin, plus récemment, l’Australie s’est attribué la deuxième place des pays importateurs de vin en vrac, derrière le Chili (15 million de litres, soit la moitié du volume importé en Chine)… l’Australie en représente un quart. Viennent ensuite l’Argentine (ex numéro deux), les États-Unis (6.5 %), l’Espagne (5%) l’Afrique du Sud et la France (seulement 1% pour chacun).

Un véritable bond en avant pour ce pays sur les quatre dernières années… l’Australie passant en effet de 2% du vrac importé en 2005 à 10.5% en 2007. Je pense que le résultat est en partie du à l’offre excédentaire de vins en Australie, où quelques producteurs sont pret à vendre au-dessous des coûts reels, persuadé que les gros producteurs chinois qui coupent leur vin avec du vrac importé sont tres soucieux de leurs dépenses. Cette situation explique les changements parfois radicaux sur l’origine des approvisionnement de vins en vrac en Chine, alors que les chiffres pour les vins embouteillés importés sont beaucoup plus stables pour un meme pays donné.

En tout cas il est intéressant de remarquer que l’Australie, qui a toujours fermement tenu sa part de marché dans le secteur des vins importés embouteillés, se fait aujourd’hui remarquer aussi bien dans le haut que le bas de gamme…

Category: Nicolas Carre

Wine jobs in China: Distributor seeks sales manager in Shanghai

Posted on | October 12, 2009 | No Comments

By Jim Boyce

A China-based wine importer focused on the hotel and restaurant sector seeks an on-premise sales manager in Shanghai. Fluency in English and Mandarin preferred. Experience in the wine and/or food and beverage sector a must. For more details, or to submit a resume, email Campbell Thompson at campbell@thewinerepublic.com.

Category: Uncategorized

China contest: Wine Australia Awards to provide four trips Down Under

Posted on | October 12, 2009 | No Comments

By Jim Boyce

As noted here, Australia has been busy in the China wine market. Now Wine Australia is launching a project in China to award a trip Down Under in each of these categories: wine retail, wine writing and education, restaurants, bars, and hotels, and overall, for the person or company deemed to have “displayed an outstanding contribution to the growth of wine and of Australian wine in China,”  according to a press release from the Australian Consulate General in Shanghai.

I think I deserve the latter award because I took one of Australia’s leading wine writers to Beijing’s best Russian nightclub, Chocolate (see here and here), and gave the manager a copy of his book. Who else is  promoting Australia wine to both Chinese and Russians in this country?

Anyway, the press release says applicants must be “resident and based in mainland China“, “have a proficient understanding of written and spoken English“, and be “China based businesses, sommeliers, F&B staff, wine writers, educators, retailers, importers, distributors and restaurateurs. ” The application deadline is December 31. The winners will be announced in Beijing on January 26.

More information and application forms are available on the Wine Australia Web site.

Category: Jim Boyce

En vrac et en bouteille: le Chili serait-il la clé du changement en Chine?

Posted on | October 5, 2009 | No Comments

Note: This is a translation by Nicolas Carre of an article by Jim Boyce that originally appeared in English here on Grape Wall.

L’autre soir, en buvant une biere, il m’est venu une pensee : le Chili pourrait-il etre la clé du changement sur le marché des vins en Chine ?

Considérez quatre choses :

1. Selon les Douanes Chinoises, le Chili represente 55% du vin importé en vrac sur les trois dernières années, soit 170 millions de litres sur les 305 millions qui ont franchit la frontiere. La grande majorité de ce vin est mélangée avec le vin domestique et revendu sous étiquettes locales.

2. Si on en croit toujours les statistiques officielles, le vin en vrac représentait 12% du marché en 2008. Certains experts chinois avancent pour leur part des chiffres plus proche des 40%, expliquant que le vin domestique est régulièrement comptabilisé en double (par exemple, si la société A achète l’excédent de la société B, les deux volumes sont comptabilisés en production locale – ca fait grimper les chiffres tout ca !)

3. Si la moitié du vin en vrac importé est chilien et si 40% du vin sous des étiquettes chinoises est d’origine étrangere, cela voudrait dire qu’une bouteille de vin “chinois” est en moyenne a 20% d’origine chilienne – Si un grand nombre pratiquent le coupage avec les vins importés, il convient aussi de rappeler que quelques producteurs utilisent exclusivement les raisins locaux – Mais le point est clair : un volume considérable de vin chilien est bu en Chine! Pensez meme qu’en 2007 et 2008 il y a eu plus de vins chilien importes en vrac que la totalite des vins importés en bouteille (119 millions de litres contre 100 millions de litres).

4. Le vin chilien importé embouteillé est bon marché comparé à beaucoup de ses concurrents, en partie en raison d’accords commerciaux… Vous pouvez les acheter dans les magasins « 7-Eleven » pour RMB60. Et a l’occasion de certaines affaires, les prix baissent… j’en veux comme témoin un distributeur qui offre occasionnellement ses bouteilles aux restaurateurs pour RMB20.

Quel est mon point ? Les vins chiliens offrent au consommateur moyen une combinaison de familiarité (“Hmmm, Ca a le gout de [nom d’une grande marque], en mieux”) et un prix (“Ce n’est pas beaucoup plus cher”). Ca pourrait alors devenir un “tremplin” pour que les chinois passent de l’étiquettes domestiques a l’étrangere, un changement qui implique le goût puisque mes amis chinois disent adorer le fruité des vins chiliens.

Il est vrai cependant qu’il y a des signes inverses : les chiffres pour les vins importés en vrac cette année ont baissé… l’influence chilienne pourrait donc etre moindre; difficile de dire si les prix de vin chiliens en bouteille baisseront; la majorité des consommateurs chinois ont un penchant pour le vin français (raisons plus d’image que de goût); en plus, je ne tiens compte principalement que des chiffres de la Douanière, etc…

Mais, tout cela ne reste qu’une pensée…

Category: Nicolas Carre

No worries: Australia targeting China wine market at every level

Posted on | September 30, 2009 | 3 Comments

Australia – excuse an indirect kangaroo reference – is really hopping when it comes to the China wine scene.

First, the country has maintained a steady presence as the number two source of bottled wine by volume, taking 20 percent to 22 percent of the market the past five years, according to Customs. In the first six months of 2009, it trailed only France, the leader with a ~40 percent share, had twice as much volume as the United States, and about triple that of both Italy and Chile.

Second, Australia is striving to change its image from being a maker of good but relatively cheap wine to one with a diverse range of styles and premium wines. The Landmark Australia events I have intended in Beijing, including this one last year and another last week (details soon), have been top-notch. They blend: 1) entertaining speakers such as Paul Henry and Andrew Caillard; 2) wine distributors, consultants, writers, and other “gatekeepers” (and an occasional “fly on the wall” blogger), and; 3) impressive wines –  from Henschke Hill of Grace to Penfold’s Grange to Bass Philip Premium Pinot Noir. This is in addition to Down Under efforts ranging from the Australia Landmark tutorial to a video conference with Wolf Blass.

Third, and more recently, in the first half of 2009, Australia ranked second as a source of imported bulk wine. While Chile (~15 million liters) represented half of the ~31.5 million liters entering China, Australia came second with a quarter share. They were followed by Argentina (last year’s number two, with a quarter share) and the United States (~6.5 percent each), Spain (~5 percent), and South Africa and France (just over 1 percent each).

This is quite a leap from the past four years, when Australia represented from 2 percent (2005) to 10.5 percent (2007). I would guess this is at least partly due to the oversupply of wine in Australia, where some producers are selling below cost, though this story in The Age has people talking about wine-for-visa deals. I lean (heavily) toward the former explanation: The big Chinese producers who blend imported bulk wine with their own wine are highly cost conscious. (This helps explain strong shifts in where they source bulk wine, whereas the numbers for imported bottled figures follow steadier paths for a given country.)

In any case, it is interesting to see Australia, which has firmly held its market share in the imported bottled wine sector, now making its presence felt at both the low and high ends.

Category: Jim Boyce

Drinker beware: Canadian wine label controversey holds lessons for China

Posted on | September 29, 2009 | No Comments

By Jim Boyce

Most consumers are unaware that many of the “Chinese” wines they find in supermarkets, restaurants, and elsewhere include imported bulk wine. The amount of bulk wine in the market in recent years is somewhere between 10 percent and 40 percent, with those numbers ranging from official statistics to estimates based on the double-counting of local wine production.

To be fair, blending imported wines with Chinese ones tends to improve overall quality (see some reasons here). To be even fairer, producers should note on the label if a bottle includes imported wine, something that is rarely done. Unfortunately, my homeland of Canada also has label issues when it comes to wine. This story in the Vancouver Sun – which comes via Campbell Thompson via the Jancis Robinson Web site -  explains:

Low-cost bulk wines from places like California and South Africa are being sold in government liquor stores as B.C. wines, raising a storm of protest among winemakers and wine lovers who say the imposters are damaging the reputation of this province’s industry.

The wines are sold by Canada’s three biggest winemakers as though they are British Columbia wines, and only a keen-eyed consumer can tell the difference, said David Bond, executive director of the Association of Wine Growers of British Columbia….

“They are getting a free ride off the reputation everyone else has developed,” Bond said in an interview. “They are selling it in the B.C. wine section, and it’s atrocious. I think it’s scandalous. This is a very calculated form of consumer deception.”

Wines made from local grapes carry the designation VQA, while those with imported wine are labeled “Cellared in Canada“, though the article notes,  ”It’s only in the fine print at the bottom of the back label that the wineries identify their product as being “Cellared in Canada from domestic and imported wines.”” The situation is less transparent in China, where – except for one case of which I have heard – there is no such indication on the label.

Producing and selling “Cellared in Canada” wines might be highly profitable. But it deceives consumers and has a negative effect on the reputation of those making good wines with local grapes. Ultimately, the companies producing these “Cellared in Canada” wines may feel a backlash. The same holds true in China and hopefully this issue gets the kind of media attention it is receiving in Canada.

See also: This post on the Jancis Robinson site includes comments by the Liquor Control Board of Ontario on the different situations of Ontario and British Columbia, and on efforts being made to distinguish and promote wines made with local grapes.

Category: Jim Boyce

Whistle wetter: Summergate to distribute Vittel water in China

Posted on | September 29, 2009 | No Comments

By Jim Boyce

Summergate Fine Wines has announced it will exclusively import and distribute Vittel still mineral water, from France, for the China market starting in October. The range of products includes 1 liter glass bottles and 330 ML, 500 ML, and 1.5 ML plastic bottles. Summergate also imports and distributes Perrier sparkling mineral water.

Category: Uncategorized

Accepting applications: Landmark Australia tutorial set for next September in Yarra Valley

Posted on | September 28, 2009 | No Comments

By Jim Boyce

Wine Australia announced today that its second Landmark Australia tutorial will be held next September in Yarra Valley. Twelve wine experts from around the world, including Bell Pei Tang from China and Rebecca Leung from Hong Kong, participated in the inaugural five-day event last June in the Barossa Valley. This time around, applications from Australian wine experts will also be accepted. Penfold’s chief wine maker Peter Gago and Yalumba Wine Company head Robert Hill Smith will again participate. To apply, or for more details, see this page on the Wine Australia site.

http://www.wineaustralia.com/australia/Portals/2/MediaReleases/Media%20Release%20Landmark%20Australia%20Tutorial%202010.pdf
Category: Uncategorized

By bulk, by bottle: Is Chile the key to changing China’s wine scene?

Posted on | September 28, 2009 | 2 Comments

By Jim Boyce

Random wine thought I had while drinking a beer last night: Could Chile be the key to shifting the China wine market? Consider four things:

1.According to Customs, roughly 55 percent of the imported bulk wine entering China the last three years – 170 million liters of 305 million liters – hailed from Chile. This included ~45 percent last year. The vast majority is blended with domestic wine and sold under local labels.

2. In terms of official statistics, bulk wine accounted for ~12 percent of the market in 2008. Industry observers such as Ma Huiqin, who talks to wine technicians throughout China, say the take is closer to 40 percent because domestic wine is regularly double-counted (if company A buys surplus from company B, both count it as production)

3. If half of imported bulk wine is Chilean and if 40 percent of wine under Chinese labels is foreign, then the average bottle of “Chinese” wine is 20 percent Chilean. True, some producers use only local grapes while others blend wine from other nations. The point is a lot of of Chilean wine is being drunk in China. In fact, more Chilean bulk wine entered China in 2007 and 2008 than all imported bottled wine combined – 119 million liters versus 100 million liters. If you group Chilean bottled and bulk, the numbers are 126 million liters versus 93 million liters of wine.

4. Imported bottled Chilean wine is cheap compared to many of its competitors, partly due to a special trade deal. For example, you can buy it at 7-ELEVEN for about RMB60. And in some cases, prices are dropping, as at least one distributor is offering bottles to restaurants at RMB20.

My point? Chilean wines stands to offer the average consumer a combination of familiarity (“Hmmm, this kind of tastes like [enter big brand name], only better”) and price (“It’s not that much more expensive”). It might offer a kind of “stepping stone” from domestic labels to foreign ones, a shift that involves taste, since many of my Chinese friends like the fruitiness of many Chilean wines.

True, there are caveats vis-a-vis my position: imported bulk wine numbers have dropped this year, so the Chilean influence might ease; it is hard to say if Chilean bottled wine prices will drop; the majority of Chinese consumers lean toward French wine, for reasons more of marketing than taste; Iam relying primarily on Customs figures, and so on.

But it is a thought…

Category: Jim Boyce

Wine jobs in China: Maison Boulud in Beijing seeks head, junior sommeliers

Posted on | September 27, 2009 | No Comments

By Jim Boyce

French restaurant Maison Boulud in Beijing seeks a head sommelier to handle everything from wine service to overseeing the wine list to maintaining the cellar. It also seeks a junior sommelier. For more details on these positions, or to submit your resume, contact Ignace LeCleir at ignace.lecleir@chienmen23.com.

Maison Boulud is the first Daniel Boulud restaurant in China and is regularly ranked among the best in Beijing. It is in the former American embassy in the Ch’ienmen 23 compound.

Category: Wine jobs in China

Sour grapes: When it comes to poor Chinese wine, don’t shoot the wine maker

Posted on | September 24, 2009 | 6 Comments

Grape Wall of China High Yields in Vineyards

Grapes: A weighty matter in China

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By Jim Boyce

The past few months, I have been lucky to visit wineries along the northern swath of China – in Xinjiang, Ningxia, Shanxi, and Hebei. One thing I notice: the wines made by many producers do not always reflect the skill of the wine makers. As they say, you can’t make an omelet without breaking some eggs, and you can’t make good wine without some decent grapes. I wrote about this recently for The Global Times. In short, I noted three challenges many wine makers have in China:

1. Because wine producers source most of their grapes from farmers and pay by weight, the farmers grow as much fruit as possible rather than sacrificing some it to improve the remainder. Quantity over quality.

2. In some areas – notably Hebei and Shandong provinces, two of the country’s biggest wine making areas – the grapes may be picked as many as two weeks too early.

3. And some Chinese wine producers, notably the big ones, blend in imported bulk wine. This can actually improve overall wine quality, but could wreak havoc on consistency since, in a given year, the sources can change – last year, Chile and Argentina dominated, this year Chile and Australia are on top, and eight years ago two-thirds came from Spain.

The obvious questions is: Why do consumers tolerate this poor wine? Because many of them buy wine for health and status reasons, rather than taste. For more details on this, see the article.

Category: Jim Boyce

Fill your glass without emptying your wallet in Beijing: Torres Taste of Nations, Hilton Wine Experience

Posted on | September 14, 2009 | No Comments

If, as I do, you like the sound of filling your glass with dozens of wines while only emptying your wallet of a few kuai, then good times are coming as two of the best-value annual Beijing events are almost upon us.

First, Torres China will hold its third annual Taste of the Nations event on Saturday, September 26, from 2 PM to 5:30 PM at the Chilean embassy. The event will include 150 wines from a dozen countries. Tickets are RMB208 at the door, RMB188 prepaid – contact Sophie Sun at sophie.sun@everwines.com / 5165-5519, extension 208.

Then, the Hilton Beijing hold mark a dozen years since it held its first “wine experience.” Prepare to choose among hundreds of wines on November 9, with the trade portion slated for the morning and consumers getting the chance to exercise their taste buds in the afternoon. I’ll have details on the price, seminars, and more shortly.

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See also:
The Hilton food and wine experience: ten thoughts (2008)
Wrap up: The Hilton food and wine experience (2007)
Wining about the Bejiing Hilton wine fest (2006)
Taste of the Nations: The sequel (2008)
Wine world: Taste of Nations event (2007

Category: Uncategorized

Grape Press: Wine really *is* a passport… to Australia, and more

Posted on | September 1, 2009 | No Comments

By Jim Boyce

China-related wine news from the Web…

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Have wine, will travel

Wine really *is* a passport to the world. According to this story in the Sydney Morning Herald, some Chinese businesspeople are entering the wine business in Australia in order to secure visas and migrate to that country:

Winemakers and immigration lawyers say Chinese business people are targeting deals with the wine industry as one way to obtain proof of a commercial relationship with Australia….

Winemakers say a favoured target for such purchases is inexpensively priced wines, such as those from the Victorian regions of Riverina and Sunraysia….

Other winemakers report Chinese businessmen appearing at cellar doors for tastings, followed by immediate offers to purchase bulk quantities….

Wine exports… are gaining in popularity among Chinese businessmen seeking a product to export for the visa requirement, said a winemaker at a small Yarra Valley premium wine producer….

The winemaker said buyers are ”basically very affluent Chinese who want to relocate their families to Australia and want to have their children educated here.”

The Sydney Morning Herald points out that, for the most part, the wine flow between Australia and China is on the up and up:

No one interviewed for this story disputed the considerable interest in Australian wine from China, the great majority of which is legitimate, reflecting the rising appetite for Western wine among China’s burgeoning middle class.

In the year to June Australia exported 25.1 million litres, up 84.3 per cent from a year earlier, according to the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation.

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Try, try, and try again

A group of winery owners from Temecula in northern California will visit Hong Kong and Shenzhen in November to try and gain a foothold in the China market, according to this story. What I found interesting was that one wine maker has already twice had trouble in trying to crack the China market:

… Bill Wilson, of Wilson Creek Winery, said he lost $15,000 after a distributor who agreed to deliver Wilson Creek wines to China failed to pay up.

During a tour of China with non-Temecula wineries two years ago, Wilson said, he wasn’t allowed to give out samples because his wine supply was quarantined.

Still, Wilson said he’s willing to give China another try and is going on the trip.

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Hong Kong restaurants seek staff to hit the bottle

The Standard reports in this story of a shortage of sommeliers in Hong Kong:

Demand from the catering industry for wine experts has at least tripled in the past year despite tightening budgets due to the economic crisis.

A measure of this came as the Hong Kong Sommelier Association published its first list of 134 recognized sommeliers yesterday – and revealed that at least 200 well-paid vacancies remain.

“The market potential is much greater than that,” said HKSA chairman Nelson Chow Kwok-ming.

This demand, which is expected to rise, is seen to be linked to Hong Kong abolishing its wine duty last year and gaining prominence as one of the world’s wine hubs.

Category: Jim Boyce

Aussino World Wine Festival: Sipping, spitting, and scribbling in Beijing

Posted on | August 31, 2009 | No Comments

grape wall of china wine blog aussion world wine festival 2009 beijing (1)

By Jim Boyce

Last Saturday, Aussino became the latest wine distributor to do a tasting of a significant portion of its portfolio in Beijing, joining companies such as Torres (see here and here), ASC (here), Palette (here and here), and Gelipu and Winelink (here). The event drew a large turnout, though the entry fee appeared to be voluntary: I paid RMB150, as listed on the invite, but many people told me they walked in for free. Before I get to the wine, a few notes on this and similar tastings.

I’ll start with a problem not particular to the Aussino event: a general lack of water for tasters to rinse out their glasses and/or mouths and an excess of spittoons full to the brim. I’m not a wine event planner, but why not assign one person simply to refill water jugs and empty spittoons? Or set up water dispensers behind, say, every third tasting table and include a bucket underneath each table for the emptying of spittoons? This would keep some people from using the empty water jugs as spittoons and other (unsuspecting) people from pouring that backwash into their empty glasses.

Another general issue: bottles that are only for display. I know distributors want to show their products, but maybe having a poster of such bottles, or even placing them at the back of the table rather than with the opened ones, would bring less disappointment among those who anticipate trying a certain wine and then discover it is for display only. In the Aussino event, a related issue occurred with the German wines, with many only opened at the tail end of the four-hour event, long after one attendee had left in anger.

Some good things: Unlike at some other events, this one saw the air conditioners turned up to accommodate the large crowd and keep the room at a comfortable temperature. It featured giant signboards that showed major wine-producing countries / regions and their sub-regions. And overall, the servers were capable, save for a few who poured thimble-sized samples, and able to provide prices and other information.

As for the wines, we sampled from five continents. Here are a few that I and others liked (I didn’t try every wine on hand and these picks are based on my notes, which became progressively messier as the afternoon wore on):

Rockburn “Parkburn” Riesling 2007, from Central Otago, New Zealand: On the nose, some minerals, citrus, and that light petrol smell often associated with Riesling, as well as a slightly sweet body. While pricey at RMB296, this one might appeal to some newcomers to wine.

Finca el Origin Malbec (RMB82), Malbec Reserva (RMB120), and Malbec [Super Reserva?] (RMB275), all 2007, from Chile: Brian Yao and I both considered the entry-level wine to be decent value: fruity and, said Yao, “a bit jammy”, though he found it “a bit watery mid-palate.” The most expensive Malbec had a very good finish.

Howard Park “Leston” Shiraz 2005 from Margaret River, Australia (around RMB250, I think): Plenty of fruit, though not as heavy as its typical Barossa Valley siblings. Ethan Perk pointed this one out to me and borrowed a phrase to describe it:  “an iron fist in a velvet glove.”

Le Motte Millenium 2005 (RMB323), from South Africa. Prohibitively priced, it is nevertheless a tasty blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Malbec; what one person from Aussino described as “part French, part ‘new world’”.

Yao also considered the Pfalz Auslese 2007 (RMB138, half bottle) from Germany to be decent. He found lychee aromas, while I found flower smells, and he added, “It’s not too sweet. It’s balanced and has good acidity. It’s easy to drink.”

Overall, a good event, and one that I hope becomes an annual for Aussino.

grape wall of china wine blog aussion world wine festival 2009 beijing

Category: Jim Boyce

Grape Press: Cellar from Down Under; Latour, Lafite, and China; Canada, Chinese food, and wine

Posted on | August 19, 2009 | No Comments

Some China-related wine info from the web…

A cellar – and a criticism – from Down Under

The Age reports that Australian winery Yabby Lake has opened three “cellar doors” in Guangdong:

…. rather than treading the usual path and supplying wine to a distributor in either China or Hong Kong, Yabby Lake has entered into a retail partnership with an agent, the WOHE Wine Company. The cellar doors they have opened in three of the province’s biggest cities are a little bit like the wine-tasting and retail stores you see in airport concourses. “They are places where people can relax,” says Matthews. “They are classy, neat and friendly, and the tastings are also associated with some printed material and a film we show about our winery.”

The article also cites associate professor Fang Liu, of the University of Western Australia’s business school, as saying that for Chinese consumers wine is more about image over taste. “It is associated with elegance, wealth, style, sophistication…. It is more a statement about the country of origin and how that reflects on you personally.” And he says France has the edge here.

He is also quoted as criticizing Australian wine labels: “Bilingual labelling is good; it enhances Chinese understanding. And what’s wrong with using a really good Chinese name on the label? Australian names mean nothing to Chinese wine drinkers. And so many of the label colours are wrong. None of the Australian wine labels are really liked by the Chinese.”

Even labels with a dragon?

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Canucks pair wine and Chinese food

While this article is a bit over the top, the information about a project in Canada to pair wine with Chinese food is nevertheless interesting.

With Tony Aspler, wine educator and author, and Patrick Lin, senior chef at Metropolitan Hotels, [restaurateur and hotel president Henry] Wu embarked on a series of eight-course dinners over four nights last year to see what wines work best with traditional Cantonese fare.

They tried two to three wines per dish, nearing 100 tastings in total….

Roger Dagorn, master sommelier and maitre d’hotel at New York City’s Chanterelle restaurant, contributed his expertise to the study later on. The team presented their findings at the 2008 conference of the James Beard Association, a culinary appreciation society.

The article also states that, “Two years ago, [Wu] brought Chablis to a celebrated restaurant in Hong Kong, only to find that the waiter had never seen a bottle of white wine before.” Um, really? I mean, anyone who has been to 7-ELEVEN has seen a bottle of white wine before.

Anyway, see here for info on a project by Ch’ng Poh-Tiong, launched in Beijing  last year, pair wine and Chinese food.

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Chinese buyers help keep Latour, Lafite prices lofty

Finally, the Telegraph reports that in the midst of the global economic crisis, Chinese wine buyers have been key to supporting the prices of premium brands such as Chateau Lafite and Chateau Latour:

The stock market may have enjoyed a rally and house prices appear to have stabilised, but wine is set for a bumper year, according to dealers, thanks mostly to Chinese buyers.

The price of cases of Chateau Latour 2008, when it was released onto the market in May, was £1,590. It has since climbed to £3,000. A case of 12 bottles of Chateau Lafite Rothschild was initially priced at £1,950 but has raced up to £3,500 in just over two months, as large pools of buyers chase a dwindling supply of bottles.

The stock market may have enjoyed a rally and house prices appear to have stabilised, but wine is set for a bumper year, according to dealers, thanks mostly to Chinese buyers.
Category: Uncategorized

Wine moves: ASC to distribute Stag’s Leap in mainland China, Macau

Posted on | August 18, 2009 | No Comments

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By Jim Boyce

China-based wine importer and distributor ASC announced today that it will add Napa Valley winery Stag’s Leap to its portfolio in mainland China and Macau as of September 1. ASC already has the winery in its Hong Kong portfolio.

The press release stressed the legacy of Stag’s Leap:

In the first few years, the small family run winery was little known outside the Napa Valley.  That changed in 1976 when Steven Spurrier, now consultant editor of Decanter magazine and a renowned wine taster, staged a blind tasting among French wine experts – known famously today as the 1976 “Judgement of Paris” tasting.

To everyone’s astonishment, the 1973 Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon took top honors, triumphing over first-growth Chateau Mouton-Rothschild, Chateau Haut-Brion and other renowned wines of Bordeaux.

ASC states that it will carry the following wines: Cask 23 Estate, S.L.V. Estate, Fay Estate, Artemis, and Hawk Crest Cabernet Sauvignon, Karia Chardonnay, Hawk Crest Merlot, and Hawk Crest Chardonnay.

Summergate has been importing and distributing Stag’s Leap.

Category: Jim Boyce
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