Still feels weird to be inside a crowded room. Today I joined the Beijing stop of ASC Fine Wine's China tour.

Nice to check out part of the ASC portfolio, including Louis Jadot, Norton, Robert Mondavi, Robert Weil, Muga, Cono Sur and Casa Silva -- I went back for a second pour of their Pinot Noir.

Just ten weeks ago, restaurants and bars in Beijing were not able to accept patrons, events were being canceled left, right and center, travel was risky, and we had to do regular COVID testing / scan QR codes to get into venues. It feels like 10 months, not 10 weeks...

#wine #winetasting #winebusiness #winelife #beijingwine #grapewallofchina

Chinese wine story in Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat.

Includes a visit to Lion winery in Beijing: most vines are buried for the winter in northern China, but Lion has hybrids that can withstand the weather. And the wines, while a bit offbeat, are quite enjoyable. And still a work in progress.

Also, a visit to CHEERS, a wine shop chain founded in 2011 in Beijing. In this case, the reporter attended their Wednesday night wine buffet, which features five different wines each week, and talked to consumers.

I tagged along on the visit to Lion, in part because I wanted to see 86-year-young Zou Fulin, the chief consultant, who I first met when he at a fellow Fangshan District winery, Bolongbao.

Zou has endless energy, giving us a tour that lasted several hours and covered the vineyard, winery, cellar and his hundreds of test samples (see photo 2).

Story is here:

https://www.hs.fi/ulkomaat/art-2000009184008.html

#wine #chinawine #beijingwine #hybridgrapes #winemaking #fangshan #beijing #china

First post. With harvest finished, the vineyards are readied so the vines can be buried to protect them from the cold dry winters.

Photo taken at Lion Fort Winery in Beijing's Fangshan District, which has also created hybrid grapes that require no burial -- the big issue will be selling the story and taste to consumers.

Our tour was led by the 86-year-young chief wine consultant Zou Fu and included a look at the winery, cellar and laboratory, plus a tasting that evolved into a dinner gathering.

#wine #china #chinesewine #beijing #beijingwine #fangshan #grapewallofchina