Where is the best place to settle a wineyard in China? China and its new wines.

There is a quest currently going on in China, with essential things are at stake: where is the best place to produce wine in China? Teams of experts are exploring the country, doing experiments, observe the soil, the surrounding, measure the humidity, plan new kinds of grape. This is in China today and this is something complicated in a country that wants everything big.


The things are going on, and on the places that have been experimented great hopes are rising, because betwenn 2007 and 2012, the wine consumption in China has more than doubled and the furure looks even more promising with an expected 40% increase before 2016.


Many actors from all over the world are trying to find the most suited location, many french groups, leaders in this field are leading the search.


For Domains Baron de Rotschild, the best place should be in Penglai, which is an humid peninsula in the east of Shandong province. LVMH, with its brands Moët & Chandon, Veuve Cliquot and Dom Pérignon have chosen the Ningxia province, a province in the south and are trying to design a sparkling wine there. There is another attempt in Yunnna well under way since the first producton is expected there this year.

Nothing is yet sure and everything is uncertain. There is no place with ideal weather, Ningxia is arid, Shandong has heavy rains during the year, Yunnan in mountain areas has a tempered weather but with a tropical influence as well.

Everything needs to be proven in any of these locations, Nigxia seems to be the leader in favourite place, currently. In september 2011, Wine produced from Ningxia won some awards, including a prestigious prize in teh London World Decanter awards.

Good wine can be produced there but there is a market issue: Chinese people are not aware of it.

The good quality of wine is a long and complicated process, in all those places producing good quality of wine will take years. Experiments and adjustments will be made before good wine can be produced there.

Wine is not something really new in China, it has been inroduced in 1892 in Shandong with Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, Shandong. The difficulty there s to adapt the wine production to the heavy humidity, specific techniques have to be designed. The quality results are uncertain there as well as it is being improved.

The funny thibg is that there is couterfeit bottles of the abovementioned brands in areas where the production has not begun. This is the Chinese effect.

Source : AFP