Definition: chine 2

The Chinese authorities make no secret of their ambition to be among the top three wine-producing countries within 10 years. China's priority is to supply its huge domestic market with local wine, with a clear objective: to be among the world's three largest wine producers within 10 years. In just a few years, it has already become the world's leading brewer and is aiming to do the same with wine. With an annual production of 4 million hectolitres of wine, China currently ranks ninth among wine-producing countries. It has more than 500 winegrowers to date. Although the average quality of wines remains mediocre, it is constantly improving thanks to the training of Chinese oenologists. The government also funds research programmes to find the grape varieties best suited to the country's terroir and climatic conditions.
The Chinese wine market is full of mysteries. In 1990, it was in its death throes: its 6,000 glorious years of history and its rebirth under the Jesuits in the 19th century, who produced their own sacramental wine, had all disappeared after 1949, leaving only a few abandoned cellars. However, in 2006, there was a sudden revival. Today, the vineyard covers 80,000 hectares and produces 4 million hectolitres, representing a low average yield of 50 hl/ha, mainly due to the young vines not yet in production.

By Caroline Puel
It was a few months ago, during a dinner in Bordeaux, bringing together wine specialists for a blind tasting. Usually, professionals can identify the origin, and often the year, of a bottle – whose label is hidden – in a matter of minutes. But this time, the tasting was followed by silence, broken only by glowing comments. And when Gérard Colin, a French oenologist who has been producing wine in China since 2000, revealed that he had brought the bottle from his vineyard in Shanxi, the audience was stunned. Someone joked, "How much would you want us to pay you to stop making wine there? " For this rock-solid bon vivant who grew up in Saint-Émilion and has been travelling around China for a decade, the answer is clear: "I am convinced that by 2010, China will be one of the world's three leading wine producers. You only have to look at the evolution of the beer market," continues the oenologist. Last year, China became the world's leading beer producer.
Wine was introduced to China by Jesuit missionaries in the 18th century. However, cultivation remained limited for a long time and the wine was of mediocre quality. The first industrial vineyards developed on the basis of this missionary heritage. In the 1980s, Western investors attempted to develop joint ventures with Chinese partners (Pernod Ricard, William Peters, etc.), but encountered numerous setbacks. Many withdrew. In 1994, the Chinese authorities set themselves the goal of catching up with international standards. At the same time, they sought to develop Chinese wine.
Ten years ago, red wine was rarely seen on Chinese tables. Foreign wine was unaffordable due to huge import taxes. A bottle of table wine cost the equivalent of a month's salary. And the privileged few who were allowed to try it found it too acidic. It is true that French importers did not mince their words, taking advantage of the Chinese people's ignorance. And locally produced wine was hardly famous. But the Chinese are quick learners, and when competitors from Australia, California and even Romania arrived in China with reasonably priced wines, consumers noticed the difference.
In the meantime, living standards have risen, customs duties have fallen, and supermarkets such as Carrefour have established themselves there. Wine is appreciated by the new urban generation, who have often studied or travelled abroad.

Ninth in the world:
Serving wine at the table is a way of establishing one's social status. "When you're poor, you drink white alcohol, when you're middle class, you drink beer, but when you're rich, you drink wine!" explains a promoter in his fifties who treats his guests to a bottle of "bu-er-do" (Bordeaux)! According to estimates, this class of wine lovers represents a market of 200 to 400 million consumers. Ninety per cent of the wine consumed in China is produced locally. This represents significant potential, especially as the government is encouraging this trend. Even the propaganda machine is getting involved, claiming on radio and television that a glass of red wine a day is good for your health.
China ranks ninth in the world and is set to increase its production, explains Li Hua, 45, the Chinese government's chief oenologist. Trained at the Bordeaux-II Institute of Oenology and a French speaker, Li has set up a faculty of oenology in Yangling, the high-tech zone near Xian. He sits as a Shaanxi deputy in the National Assembly. Grape growing has advantages, he explains. Grapes can adapt to poor soil and are resistant to drought. Growing them provides jobs for farmers and protects the environment. And wine tourism can be developed.
But China still needs to produce quality wine. Since 2004, the government (both central and local) has been funding research: China wants to find grape varieties suited to its terroirs, while preserving their diversity. The Yangling Institute has a collection of 300 grape varieties and Li Hua will submit a development project for the Chinese wine industry at the end of the year. "Our priority is first and foremost to occupy the domestic market. But we are also aiming to export. " In this context, is there an opportunity for French winegrowers to set up in China? Yes, says Gérard Colin, who is working on a new project in Shandong bringing together winegrowers from all over the world. But to establish yourself in China, you need a strategy and you have to focus on quality!

Jacques Dupont
The trials and tribulations of French wine in China:
Great hope or new competition? French producers and merchants are sceptical. They dream in numbers: if every newly rich Chinese person consumed one bottle per month, goodbye crisis, overproduction and falling prices! However, most recent export experiences have turned into fiascos.
"We went to China around 1995," says Bernard Jeanjean, a major operator in the Languedoc region and owner of wine merchants in the Rhône Valley and Cahors. "We had nothing but problems: dishonest local managers, customers who didn't pay. We sold 50% of the company to the city council. Then we wanted to set up in Shanghai, but we couldn't find anyone to take over." Many of those who tried their luck at that time lost money. Most had misjudged China's needs. While the Japanese market was patiently conquered by quality brands (Moët & Chandon, Georges Duboeuf, etc.), Chinese consumers were often offered cheap wines. This was a mistake. Those in China who could afford to buy wine had incomes comparable to Russians who drank Château-Margaux wine in Parisian palaces," says Jean-Pierre Rousseau, a wine merchant in Bordeaux.
At the dawn of the new millennium, there was a second setback. The Chinese economic miracle was overestimated: "In 1998, as soon as a French person returned from China, they had only one idea in mind: to ship wine there. Far too much wine was sent. Entire containers were stuck in Canton. There were great Bordeaux châteaux sold on the sly by customs. It was chaos and the market was broken," recalls Bernard Jeanjean. Meanwhile, the Australians were gradually gaining ground with high-end, heavily marketed products. Future Chinese oenologists were training at the universities of Bordeaux and Montpellier, and the French were exporting their expertise to China. However, demand for quality wine in this country of fine cuisine is likely to exceed the production capacity of local vineyards for some time to come. Despite the setbacks, Bernard Jeanjean confides: "We're planning to go back!" With great wines and local support.
© Le Point 30/06/05 - No. 1711 - Page 64
The leading Chinese producer is HuaXia-Great Wall Winery, and the best value for money in 2006 goes to Dragon Seal, far behind in 12th place.

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