MARK GRAHAM EXPLORES CHINA’S DEVELOPING THIRST FOR WINE IN the newly afluent cities of China, where the younger generation are constantly in search of status-symbol trappings or other ways of demonstrating their internationally minded sophistication, wine drinking is becoming a must-do lifestyle activity. Wine bars are springing up in all the most afluent urban centres of China – Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Guilin and Zhengzhou – patronised enthusiastically by the aspirational middle classes. Being knowledgeable about diff erent vintages and styles is seen as a mark of a thoroughly cosmopolitan individual. Volcano Wang, manager of the Senses Wine Lounge in Shanghai, says, “In the past, most Chinese people were interested in cocktails – they thought wine was only for the rich people, unlike in the West – but this is changing now. “Most of our local customers have lived or travelled abroad and know what a good wine is. However, most local people aren’t so knowledgeable – even those who are think it is all France and do not know much about Australia or Argentina.

Wine is similar to a culture. Foreigners like Chinese culture, and for me, it is the same – I am absolutely absorbed by it and want to learn more

“Wine is similar to a culture. Foreigners like Chinese culture, and for me, it is the same – I am absolutely absorbed by it and want to learn more. My aspiration is to go to France and visit Chateau Lafitte or Chateau Petrus.” Imports into China have begun to surge as overseas distributors try to get a foothold in the potentially lucrative market. The nation has a population of around 1.3 billion people, with an estimated 300 million of them, mostly living along the eastern seaboard, earning enough money to aff ord luxury consumer goods. Local Chinese producers also have one eye on the growing wine market. The number of vineyards has grown quickly to the current 400 or so, partly because the government has encouraged the sale and consumption of fruit-based alcoholic drinks instead of grain-based spirits. The much-touted health benefits of drinking red wine have also been widely publicised in China. “The Chinese are getting off spirits and they are moving into more of a lifestyle approach to drinking wine,” says David Henderson of importers Montrose. “When the Chinese first started to appreciate wine, they went straight for the big reds. One of the reasons for this, I believe, is that they drink a tremendous amount of tea, and the tannins which are in tea are exactly the same as those in red wine. “Health plays a big part in the renewed interest – the Chinese are health-conscious to a tee, and if asked, many people would say that they drink wine for this reason rather than the taste.” Another reason, among young urban drinkers, is to be trendy and cool, just like their counterparts in London, New York and Paris. One distributor, ASC Fine Wines, conducts regular educational sessions for would-be connoisseurs, explaining the niceties of appreciation and etiquette. “There is so much change, and it is happening so quickly, that there is a thirst for knowledge – whether it is wine, cars, or the stock market,” says ASC president Don St Pierre Jr. “People are interested in learning and reading about anything that is part of a new lifestyle.” CRYSTAL CLEAR Money was clearly no object when the Bodega Langes project was dreamed up, designed and built. It is fair to say that the chateau has only one real rival in the distinctive-structure stakes in this particular region of east-coast China, and that is the Great Wall itself, which is located close by. Bodega Langes is a personal project of Gernot Langes-Swarovski, a member of the Austrian family known for its intricate, ornate and expensive crystal ornaments and tableware. Like every other symbol of wealth and style – Rolex watches, Mercedes cars, fine French wines – the crystal has been bought up enthusiastically in recent years by newly rich Chinese. Langes-Swarovski had long been intrigued by the country and – as business began to be established there – decided to build a no-expense-spared winery dedicated to producing a quality wine packaged and promoted unabashedly towards the nouveau riche. This freshly minted class are also the target of the Bodega Langes hotel-cum-spa, where guests can check in for several days of pampering, choosing from a range of options that includes grape-seed beauty treatments. A conference centre is also attached, along with a palatial house for Langes-Swarovski’s personal use, and an academy that, when fully up and running, will teach local Chinese about the art of wine-making. The business has proved to be a steep learning curve for managing director Ren Jing, an urbane individual who can easily switch between English, German and Chinese with fluent and practised ease. Much of his career was spent with the Chinese government; during postings to Vienna, he established a close network of high-level contacts, among them Langes-Swarovski. Some years later, when the winery idea was mooted, Ren was hired to supervise the entire operation, starting with the organisation of a trip to Europe by two Chinese architects to observe, first hand, the designs of classic chateaux. Now that the winery is operational, it is producing 400,000 bottles a year, with an ultimate capacity of a million bottles. The plan, however, is not to flood the market but to produce refined wine, marketed with an emphasis on exclusivity. “We have no plans to make mass-market wines,” says Ren. “All the materials are from our own vineyard. Other wineries have perhaps a small vineyard but not enough production, so they have to import wine from other countries.” The prices certainly ensure that only the very well-heeled will be able to aff ord Bodega Langes as a special treat. The 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection retails for a heft y $73 and the 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve for $54, with a 2002 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot priced at $35, the same as the 2002 Rosé. “A lot of banks and companies buy our wine, as do personal consumers, people who have lived several years abroad and have come back to China,” explains Ren. “They are people who know about wine. “It is also served at special events such as diplomatic circle dinners. I do a lot of public relations, but our main strategy has been word of mouth. Mr Langes-Swarovski has always stressed that quality is the most important part… he is not thinking about the return for the first five years.” A WOMAN’S TOUCH Chinese leader Mao Zedong was fond of saying that women hold up half the sky. He would be pleased to note that a group of dynamic females are doing their bit to help the Chinese wine industry expand. At Huadong Winery, which produces some of the nation’s best white wines, the manager and wine-maker are both female, while over at Grace Vineyard, generally agreed to be producing the finest wines in China, overseas-educated Judy Leissner is putting her Hong Kong banking and management expertise to good use. Grace is bankrolled by Leissner’s father, CK Chan, who developed a taste for wine while making frequent business trips to France. He enlisted the help of French colleagues to identify the suitable terroir for grape-growing in China. The result was Grace Vineyard, near the Yellow River, where veteran Bordeaux wine-maker Gerard Colin is producing wines that are earning favourable reviews. So highly rated are Grace wines that they have found their way into the cellars of one of the world’s finest hotels, The Peninsula in Hong Kong, as well as being available at upmarket outlets in China itself. “The Peninsula was our biggest success last year, and we are very excited about it,” says Leissner. “The hotel looks for quality and did a blind tasting with the experts. What distinguishes us from other wineries is quality. Everyone is growing cabernet sauvignon, so we experimented with diff erent varieties and some local ones. Profit-making is not our main focus for now. It is a long-term investment.” This page, Grace Vineyard stocks the cellars at well-to-do establishments, offering wines that are highly rated by the experts. China’s new cosmopolitanism means exciting new options for visitors. Until recently, it was only the big hotels that off ered gourmet food and a decent selection of wine; now more and more independent restaurants and wine bars are springing up.

Most of our clients are super well-versed… they don’t ask stupid questions. They will say ‘Find me a Mouton today. I feel like a Mouton’

One of the most exclusive – and expensive – of the new breed is Jean Georges in Shanghai, run by renowned French fusion chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten. The Three on the Bund restaurant has a fine-wine cellar – as well as patrons who are not afraid of splashing out for special occasions. Singaporean sommelier Yvonne Chiong has been surprised at the level of knowledge displayed by customers. “Most of our clients know all the first growths, and some are super well-versed,” says Chiong. “They have an expression here that translates as ‘old carats’ for the older generation of Shanghainese who have dealt with foreign businessman and made lots of money. Having entertained for so many years, they know the finest wines and don’t ask stupid questions like ‘How come Latour is so expensive?’. Instead, they will say ‘Find me a Mouton today. I feel like a Mouton’.” All of this is marvellous news for visitors, who can now be assured of a decent drop of vino when in China, rather than having to endure the oft en vile liquids off ered up in the past. Newer wine-making companies such as the state company Suntime are targeting the middle classes with well-priced everyday wines produced way out west in Xinjiang province. The privately owned Grace Vineyards is making vintages that are finding their way onto the cartes of the finest restaurants. “We are targeting to grow bigger and bigger,” says Yang Huafeng of Suntime. “For the past few years demand has grown at 15%, and I think it will continue growing at that rate, or faster.”