It's the crystal ball of all things wine, the Future of Wine report by London based merchants, Berry Brothers and Rudd. Their prediction? That China's wine producers will lead the world by 2058, rivallling the best of Bordeaux.
Presenter: Bo Hill
Speakers: Marc Curtis, founder China Wine Tours; Steve Clarke, president, China Silk Imports.
HILL: Champagne, Bordeaux, Napa Valley, the Rhine, the Barossa Valley - the names of old and new world wine regions slide over the tongue as easily as, well, a good red. But what about Shanxi?
CURTIS: In Shanxi province is what's considered to be the best wine in China right now is Grace Vineyards and they've become the house wine in such hotels as the Peninsula, and some other very high end hotels, they're so good."
Full article and audio stream at: Radio Australia
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Monday, April 28, 2008
China Winery Visit: Bordeaux Style
In March I had the opportunity to visit Chateau Bolongbao in Hebei Province, about an hour outside of Beijing. Also along on the visit was Jim Boyce, author of The Grape Wall of China blog who posted a story and some photos about our visit.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Global Warming to Help China
http://www.indianwineacademy.com/item_1966.aspx
Whether it is toys, computers or silk sarees from India, China can make more and cheaper. Now Mother Nature is also benevolent. With global warming to its aid China is set to become a prominent wine producing country in a few decades.
Speaking at the Climate Change and Wine Conference in Barcelona which was reported in the previous issue of delWine, the Australian consultant on viticulture, Dr Richard Smart said: "In 30 years time, China will be a country better able to adapt to global warming." He was talking on 'global warming and its impact on vines and viticulture' at the conference.
Dr. Smart is already involved in advising Chinese investors looking to purchase suitable wine producing land and they are currently looking at an area close to Beijing.
Smart said that while China, currently 8th largest producer of grapes in the world is very wet near the coast and more arid towards the inland, would provide exciting opportunities in the future, going northwards.
Southern hemisphere regions like Chile, Argentina, Tasmania and New Zealand, as well as Northern Europe and even some parts of China are 'lucky', Smart suggested, as there was room for growers to move to cooler or higher areas to plant grapes.
Growing new varieties of grapes especially for hotter regions would be a crucial industry response to ongoing global warming, he said. Smart also suggested harvesting at night and the utilization of classical breeding rather than molecular techniques as a potential solution.
The conference kicked off with an address from Pancho Campo, President of the Wine Academy of Spain, and local politicians. A spokesman from the Catalan department of climate said, 'There is no point crying over spilt milk. We have to find solutions for our problems and that is exactly what we intend to do today."
President of OIV, the International Organisation for Vine and Wine, Peter Hayes said the challenges being posed by climate change to the wine sector were reflected across the world. 'I hope we might see action on regional planning" adding that it was a question of allocation of resources.'
Whether it is toys, computers or silk sarees from India, China can make more and cheaper. Now Mother Nature is also benevolent. With global warming to its aid China is set to become a prominent wine producing country in a few decades.
Speaking at the Climate Change and Wine Conference in Barcelona which was reported in the previous issue of delWine, the Australian consultant on viticulture, Dr Richard Smart said: "In 30 years time, China will be a country better able to adapt to global warming." He was talking on 'global warming and its impact on vines and viticulture' at the conference.
Dr. Smart is already involved in advising Chinese investors looking to purchase suitable wine producing land and they are currently looking at an area close to Beijing.
Smart said that while China, currently 8th largest producer of grapes in the world is very wet near the coast and more arid towards the inland, would provide exciting opportunities in the future, going northwards.
Southern hemisphere regions like Chile, Argentina, Tasmania and New Zealand, as well as Northern Europe and even some parts of China are 'lucky', Smart suggested, as there was room for growers to move to cooler or higher areas to plant grapes.
Growing new varieties of grapes especially for hotter regions would be a crucial industry response to ongoing global warming, he said. Smart also suggested harvesting at night and the utilization of classical breeding rather than molecular techniques as a potential solution.
The conference kicked off with an address from Pancho Campo, President of the Wine Academy of Spain, and local politicians. A spokesman from the Catalan department of climate said, 'There is no point crying over spilt milk. We have to find solutions for our problems and that is exactly what we intend to do today."
President of OIV, the International Organisation for Vine and Wine, Peter Hayes said the challenges being posed by climate change to the wine sector were reflected across the world. 'I hope we might see action on regional planning" adding that it was a question of allocation of resources.'
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
The China Wine Syndrome
From Michael Veseth's Grape Expectations
I've never tasted Chinese wine, but that's going to change quite soon. I have two bottles, both hand-carried from China by my former student Brian West. One is a 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon from China's oldest winery, Changyu (founded in 1892). The other is a 2003 Tasya's Reserve Cabernet Franc from what many people say is China's best winery, Grace Vineyard (or Shanxi Grace Vineyard to differentiate it from a Japanese winery with the same name -- Shanxi is the region of China where Grace Vineyard is located).
I have heard a lot of stories about Chinese wine -- about how bad it is, how prestige-seeking Shanghai yuppies mix expensive first growth Bordeaux with Coca Cola and of vast vineyards in China that threaten to flood world markets with cheap wine (as Chinese exports have flooded some other markets already). The prospect of drinking Chinese wine for the first time gave me an incentive to see what I could find out about the Chinese wine industry and market. Here is a brief account of what I have learned.
The complete article is available at Michael Veseth's Grape Expectations
I've never tasted Chinese wine, but that's going to change quite soon. I have two bottles, both hand-carried from China by my former student Brian West. One is a 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon from China's oldest winery, Changyu (founded in 1892). The other is a 2003 Tasya's Reserve Cabernet Franc from what many people say is China's best winery, Grace Vineyard (or Shanxi Grace Vineyard to differentiate it from a Japanese winery with the same name -- Shanxi is the region of China where Grace Vineyard is located).
I have heard a lot of stories about Chinese wine -- about how bad it is, how prestige-seeking Shanghai yuppies mix expensive first growth Bordeaux with Coca Cola and of vast vineyards in China that threaten to flood world markets with cheap wine (as Chinese exports have flooded some other markets already). The prospect of drinking Chinese wine for the first time gave me an incentive to see what I could find out about the Chinese wine industry and market. Here is a brief account of what I have learned.
The complete article is available at Michael Veseth's Grape Expectations
Now, Super-wine to boost your lifespan
London, Jan 8 (ANI): The health benefits of wine have since long been known, but now fans of the fruity cocktail may have something new to cheer about, for Chinese scientists have made a wine made from genetically engineered grapes which might help boost the drinkers longevity.
Yuejin Wang and colleagues at the Northwest Agricultural and Forestry University in Yangling, Shaanxi province, China, have produced a grapevine six times richer in resveratrol the compound in red wine associated with health benefits.
The researchers made the wine equipped it with an extra gene from a wild Chinese vine, reports New Scientist.
Vitus pseudoreticulata has an unusual variant of the stilbene synthase gene, which triggers resveratrol production.
The team plans to make wine from the GM (Genetically Engineered) vine, although their major goal is to make grapevines more resistant to fungus, which is kept in check by resveratrol. (ANI)
Yuejin Wang and colleagues at the Northwest Agricultural and Forestry University in Yangling, Shaanxi province, China, have produced a grapevine six times richer in resveratrol the compound in red wine associated with health benefits.
The researchers made the wine equipped it with an extra gene from a wild Chinese vine, reports New Scientist.
Vitus pseudoreticulata has an unusual variant of the stilbene synthase gene, which triggers resveratrol production.
The team plans to make wine from the GM (Genetically Engineered) vine, although their major goal is to make grapevines more resistant to fungus, which is kept in check by resveratrol. (ANI)
Wednesday, December 26, 2007
Chinese Wine Ceremony
From CRIEnglish.com
A Chinese traditional "wine ceremony" was held on Sunday at Southwest University of southwestern China's Chongqing municipality to remind people of the country's traditional culture at the time of Christmas.
Students wearing Han-style clothes held a traditional Chinese "wine ceremony" at Southwest University in Chongqing on Sunday, December 23, 2007. [Photo: Chongqing Evening News]
Wearing Han-style clothes, more than 20 students, respectively playing the "hosts" and "guests", revived the wine ceremony in front of the Confucius sculpture in the university, local Chongqing Evening News reported.
Taking two bows to "hosts" with cups held to their waists, the "guests" drank rice wine slowly after "hosts" requited with hands folded together in front. The wine in the cup shouldn't be drunk up at once so as to show respect to the "hosts". The whole ceremony lasted nearly two hours with twelve steps including welcoming guests, washing cups, obeisance etiquettes, drinking wine and reciting classic poems.
According to the principal student, "wine ceremony" was an academic ceremony in ancient China. Local sages are invited to the grand ceremony in midwinter every year. The ceremony showed respect to knowledge and people with talents. The students hoped to promote traditional Chinese culture and recall respect for classical culture by this activity.
As the ceremony has almost been lost since the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD), the students held the ceremony according to ancient books from library. The Han-style clothes they wore were also self-designed referring to historical information.
A Chinese traditional "wine ceremony" was held on Sunday at Southwest University of southwestern China's Chongqing municipality to remind people of the country's traditional culture at the time of Christmas.
Students wearing Han-style clothes held a traditional Chinese "wine ceremony" at Southwest University in Chongqing on Sunday, December 23, 2007. [Photo: Chongqing Evening News]
Wearing Han-style clothes, more than 20 students, respectively playing the "hosts" and "guests", revived the wine ceremony in front of the Confucius sculpture in the university, local Chongqing Evening News reported.
Taking two bows to "hosts" with cups held to their waists, the "guests" drank rice wine slowly after "hosts" requited with hands folded together in front. The wine in the cup shouldn't be drunk up at once so as to show respect to the "hosts". The whole ceremony lasted nearly two hours with twelve steps including welcoming guests, washing cups, obeisance etiquettes, drinking wine and reciting classic poems.
According to the principal student, "wine ceremony" was an academic ceremony in ancient China. Local sages are invited to the grand ceremony in midwinter every year. The ceremony showed respect to knowledge and people with talents. The students hoped to promote traditional Chinese culture and recall respect for classical culture by this activity.
As the ceremony has almost been lost since the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD), the students held the ceremony according to ancient books from library. The Han-style clothes they wore were also self-designed referring to historical information.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
An Interview with Jancis Robinson
November 12th, 2007 by GrapeRadio Bunch in Discussion, Podcast
Unless you have been on a desert island for the past 20 years, the name Jancis Robinson will need no introduction. However, for those of you who have unfortunately been marooned, here is a brief introduction.
Since 1975, Jancis has been one of the preeminent voices in the world of wine. A Master of Wine, author of several books – most notably a massive tome called The Oxford Companion to Wine – as well as several television shows and other broadcast media, Jancis is considered to be the one of the most (if not the most) prolific wine writers on the planet.
Join us as we talk with Jancis about wine, her career, her colleagues, and her huge impact on a generation and a half of wine consumers.
For more information on Jancis Robinson: www.jancisrobinson.com
To hear an excerpt from this interview click here
To listen to the entire interview from Grape Radio click here.
Unless you have been on a desert island for the past 20 years, the name Jancis Robinson will need no introduction. However, for those of you who have unfortunately been marooned, here is a brief introduction.
Since 1975, Jancis has been one of the preeminent voices in the world of wine. A Master of Wine, author of several books – most notably a massive tome called The Oxford Companion to Wine – as well as several television shows and other broadcast media, Jancis is considered to be the one of the most (if not the most) prolific wine writers on the planet.
Join us as we talk with Jancis about wine, her career, her colleagues, and her huge impact on a generation and a half of wine consumers.
For more information on Jancis Robinson: www.jancisrobinson.com
To hear an excerpt from this interview click here
To listen to the entire interview from Grape Radio click here.
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