National Effort: 100 China Wine Tastings on a Budget

(A version of this post first appeared in the free Grape Wall newsletter. Sign up here.)

Say you are a winemaker with an incredibly tight schedule—you consult for nine wineries within 100 km of your home and are thus constantly on the road.

And as each winery has a unique blend of grape varieties, micro terroirs and owners, and you being a Burgundy-trained winemaker, you are compelled to bring out the best of each place.

On top of that, you are responsible for making wine for one of China’s top KOLs as well as the house brands for several bars and restaurants.

Add the commitment of a young family and there is little time or money to promote your own brand—the wines made in your personal style.

What is an ambitious winemaker to do? Deng Zhongxiang, the man in question–aka China’s Driving Winemaker—found a solution.

He leveraged China’s excellent logistics chain to partner with people who care about local wines. It’s a project that translates to “100 Nationwide Tastings.”

Project 100

In late March, Deng created six-packs of his Ningxia wines: two vintages each of Cabernet, Marselan and Syrah. He then sent a six-pack to any wine bar, restaurant, KOL or other trade person who asked for one, ultimately shipping over one hundred packages in just three days.

“Thanks to China’s developed logistics, I can send wine to every corner of the country,” he wrote on WeChat.*

Halfway There

“Almost half of the tastings have been completed in the past two to three weeks and the rest will be held soon,” Deng told me a few weeks ago.

The tastings cover well-known cities such as Shanghai, Shenzhen, Beijing and Chongqing as well as lesser-known ones, at least to most people outside of China, like Changchun, Lanzhou, Shijiazhuang and Wuxi.

Even more impressive is many organizers are going above and beyond a simple tasting to embrace the spirit of the project—creating posters, sharing photos and videos, and posting tasting notes.

Reaching Consumers

But the most important result is simply getting the wines into consumer mouths.

“Our wine is good enough, but most people have not heard of it,” says Deng. “And people who have not heard of it have not tasted it. We need to reach our real customers, to use our beautiful wine to touch their taste buds, and to appeal to their wallets with reasonable prices.”*

Deng’s role didn’t end with the shipment. He has served as a communications hub for the tastings, reposting the photos, posters and more from all over China, tagging them with a “100 Nationwide Tasting” hashtag that anyone can follow.

This promotes not only his wines and project but also the organizers and venues, creating buzz and momentum. It also brings attention to his clients, including noteworthy producers such as Domaine Charme, Lansai, Rongyuanmei and Mountain Wave.

Sips Become Sales

Beyond the promotion value, Deng also says the project is reaping financial rewards.

“I have received many orders from the hosts,” says he, adding that he received good feedback on all six wines, particularly the Marselan.

This project holds lessons for many in the wine industry, including those pouring substantial money into endless city tours and master classes that often recycle the same limited number of attendees, who are happy to enjoy a regular circuit of free wine events.

Deng instead went directly to consumers, or at least to people who connect directly to consumers, with good results at a more than reasonable cost.

Beyond 100

In fact, Deng says that after the current 100 Nationwide Tastings campaign wraps up this month, he is planning a second promotion with three Marselan and three Syrah to show consumers the distinct differences between the Ningxia vintages of 2021, 2022 and 2023.

I have a feeling he won’t be alone for long. Deng’s effort is gaining much attention and I’m sure we will see similar campaigns soon.

* These quotes are also in the Wine-Searcher article “China Chases New Wine Consumers“, which briefly covers creative promotions by local wineries, including an adopt-a-vine program, booking booths at whisky festivals, and Deng’s effort.

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