In the domestic market, the vigorous development of various independent brands is remarkable. It has been more than 10 years since 2010, when China's GDP surpassed That of Japan and it has jumped to the second place in the world, during which time many world brands have poured into the Chinese market in search of business opportunities. At the same time, after understanding the standards of world brands, some talents who have returned from overseas studies have created Chinese products that pursue quality and value.
On the wine list of Joel robuchon, a famous French restaurant in Japan, there is a Chinese wine on the list along with famous wineries in Europe and the United States, and is also sold by a major department store in Shinjuku, Tokyo, which is a wine from the winery "Nine Tops Estate" in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China.
World-class elegance
It is reported that the Shandong Province where Jiuding is located has a similar climate to the Bordeaux region of France, which is the basis of modern Chinese wine. Yantai Zhangyu Group established a base area based on the distillery founded by Overseas Chinese Zhang Bishi in 1892. Born from the hierarchy of the local wine industry, Jiuding began growing grapes in 2009, with the first wines on the market in 2011.
The brand's wines are not only attracted by the attention of wine lovers around the world, but the wine website operated by the French Michelin Group has also selected one of the wines as one of the 100 bottles of world wine that will attract attention in 2020, which has received the highest level of evaluation as a Chinese wine.
Results in expanding green areas
In other parts of China, the brewing industry is also expanding, and Yinchuan in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region is one of the representatives. In 1997, after China's visit to France, an agreement was reached with then French President Jacques Chirac on cooperation in the field of wine. As part of the desert greening policy, Yinchuan grows grape seedlings imported from France.
At first, due to the lack of edible grape seedlings, wine grapes were tried to be grown, but the winery's trading volume increased sharply because of the high quality of the grapes. Yinchuan has a moderate amount of daylight that is longer than Shandong's and shorter than that of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, thus creating a moderate balance of sweetness and sourness of grapes. In 2020, after inspecting the wineries in Yinchuan, China also proposed a policy of cultivating the wine industry.
Traditional brewing methods associated with French missionaries
In the southwest, Shangri-La in Diqing Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, has also become a high-profile wine producer. In 2013, the "Ao Yun" of the Lvivysian Group in France began to produce here, serving wine at some well-known high-end restaurants in China, which was praised by many consumers. Due to Ao Yun's success, powerful wineries such as Ningxia Liushi in Yinchuan are considering setting up a base in Shangri-La.
Why do the wine regions that have emerged in Shandong extend through Ningxia and other places to the western regions such as Shangri-La in Yunnan? According to experts, the longer the grapes take from flowering to harvest, the more suitable they are for winemaking. Shangri-La has a longer ripening time than places like Ningxia and has a large temperature difference. In addition, in yinchuan and other places, in order to protect the branches of grapes from the cold in winter, they must be buried in the soil.
In fact, Shangri-La was the place where French missionaries built churches and began to make wine for mission in the 1860s, so the tradition of winemaking took root in Shangri-La. Not only that, but missionaries brought from France the country's now-uncultured variety of "rose honey", which Shangri-La continues to brew to this day.
According to relevant media reports, by 2020, China's wine consumption will rank 6th in the world and output will rank 10th. French master chef Rui Robuchon said: "If there is a perfect wine law and regulation like France, China's winemaking technology will be developed, and the day when Chinese wine will be recorded in the textbooks of the world's sommeliers will come."