Chairman’s Reserve 2009 from Grace Vineyard in China beat Bordeaux in blind tasting
The wines were all red , mostly Cabernet Sauvignon-based Bordeaux-style blends. The Chinese side was represented by five of what are considered among the best Chinese wines produced; the French wines were five more pedestrian reds from Bordeaux negociants and commercial labels, not chateau-bottled wines.
Five French and five Chinese judges tasted the wines blind at a wine bar in Beijing. In the end, the 2009 Chairman’s Reserve from China’s Grace Vineyards in Shanxi province (怡园庄主珍藏红葡萄酒, 2009年份) came out on top — a shock result echoing a 1976 contest that saw the classics humbled by New World wines.
Chinese Wines took the four top slots in the contest and a 2009 Medoc from the Lafite vineyard in Bordeaux was the highest-scoring French wine, in fifth place.
Silver Heights The Summit 2009 银色高地阙歌红葡萄酒
1. Grace Vineyard Chairman’s Reserve 2009 (rmb488) (怡园庄主珍藏红葡萄酒, 2009年份, 产地：中国，山西. 酒庄：怡园酒庄)
2. Silver Heights The Summit 2009 (rmb416) (银色高地阙歌红葡萄酒, 2009年份, 产地：中国，宁夏. 酒庄：银色高地)
3. Helan Qing Xue Jia Bei Lan Cabernet Dry Red 2009 (was rmb220, now pending) (加贝兰赤霞珠干红葡萄酒, 产地：中国，宁夏. 酒庄：贺兰晴雪酒庄)
4. Grace Vineyard Deep Blue 2009 (rmb288) (怡园深蓝干红葡萄酒,2009年份, 产地：中国，山西. 酒庄：怡园酒庄)
5. Barons de Rothschild Collection Saga Medoc 2009 (rmb350, a commercial label from the owner of Chateau Lafite-Rothschild,)
Best Bordeaux-style wine at the 2011 Decanter World Wine Awards - Jiabeilan 2009 Cabernet Dry Red 加贝兰赤霞珠干红葡萄酒
All the wines in the contest were produced in 2008 or 2009, and all were priced between 200 and 400 yuan ($30-$60) in China — putting the Bordeaux at a disadvantage because China levies a punishing 48 percent import tax on wine.
Grace Vineyard Deep Blue 2009, Shanxi, China 山西太谷怡园深蓝干红葡萄酒
- Ma Huiqin, professor at China University of Agriculture and wine marketing expert (head judge)
- Frankie Zhao, owner of Pro-Wine Consultancy
- Fiona Sun, senior editor at China edition of Revue du Vin
- Jin Yang, wine teacher who spent five years studying in Bordeaux wine programs
- John Gai, of wine distributor and bar operation Palatte
- Nicolas Carre, sommelier and wine consultant (head judge)
- Jerome Sabate, long involved as wine maker with Dragon Seal in Beijing
- Nathalie Sibillet, oenologist, journalist and teacher
- Thomas Briollet, seven years experience in China wine distribution
- Edouard Kressman, wine maker with experience in Bordeaux, California and Argentina
Nonetheless, Bordeaux expert Nathalie Sibille said the Chinese wines had “performed very, very well”, adding, “this region (Ningxia) has enormous potential”.
China has enjoyed a huge wine-drinking boom in recent years and is now Bordeaux’s largest export client. Analysts have predicted it will overtake the United States to become the largest wine-consuming nation within 20 years.
Most of the wine made there is mass-produced and of low quality, but experts say there are now some good Chinese wines being produced — notably from Ningxia.
Moet Hennessy, the wine and spirits arm of France’s LVMH luxury group, said this year it was planting its first Chinese vineyard in Ningxia to produce sparkling wine.
And a Ningxia vintage, Winery He Lan Qing Xue’s Jia Bei Lan 2009 Cabernet Dry Red, was named best Bordeaux-style wine over 10 pounds ($15) at the Decanter World Wine Awards in London this year — prompting Wednesday’s event.
Jia Bei Lan is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Gernicht – which is believed to be related to Cabernet Franc or Carmenere – is sold only in China at present, retailing for around $20.
It is produced in Ningxia province in Northern China, in quantities of about 20,000 bottles.
The tasting came 35 years after British wine merchant Steven Spurrier organized a blind tasting that pitted some of France’s finest wines against lesser-known names from California.
“SWEETER, FRUITY”
Chinese are developing a huge appetite for wine, with high-end Bordeaux such as Chateau Lafite and Petrus, and vaunted Burgundy producer Domaine Romanee-Conti among the favorites of collectors.
French wine and champagne producers Chateau Lafite, Pernod Ricard SA and Moet-Chandon have invested in planting vineyards in China, aiming to produce quality wines and develop their brands in what is expected to become the world’s largest wine-consuming market.
While most of the wine produced in China is inexpensive bulk, quality wine is appearing from vineyards in Ningxia, Shanxi, Gansu and Shandong provinces.
Ningxia in particular is gaining attention because Jiabeilan recently won an award for excellence from the British wine magazine Decanter.
“Some of the Chinese wines are way more ‘oaky’ than what we are doing in Bordeaux for this price,” said Thomas Briollet, who has worked in China for seven years with wine importers and as export manager for French wine producers, and who was one of the French judges at the event, referring to the taste of oak barrels.
“The quality was equivalent between the wines. No one was really on top, and maybe one or two was under,” Briollet said.
The wines were in a similar price category because of a 50-percent tax on imported wine, and given that choice, the Chinese wines were better, he said.
“Ningxia wines have sweeter, more fruity tannins, and are rounder on the palate,” said John Gai, chief operating officer of the Beijing-based wine distributor 90 Points and one of the Chinese judges.
“Wine is not a new thing in China, but we are at the very start of China’s fine wine story,” said the organizer of Wednesday’s event, Jim Boyce, who runs the China wine blog www.grapewallofchina.com.
“The very good ones are mostly being made in Ningxia. For me, the link is that a lot of the winemakers there have been trained in Bordeaux.”
Gai picked Grace Vineyard’s Chairman’s Reserve, the eventual winner, as his top choice.
“It definitely has more structure and more fruit side, and has a much bigger effect on the palate,” he said. “Ningxia wines are soft and easier to drink.”
For judge Fiona Sun, editor of the Chinese edition of a French wine magazine, the results of the contest mean that “people should change their minds about Chinese wine”.
中国山西怡园深蓝干红葡萄酒打败法国波尔多名酿
中国葡萄酒打败法国波尔多名酿
仅仅十年前,中国偏远的西部地区才开始发展葡萄酒业，但现在那里出产的葡萄酒在测试中竟然击败了著名的法国波尔多酒。周三(12月14日)，由五名法国人和五名中国人组成的专家小组在北京进行了一次葡萄酒”盲测”，结果是中国出产的葡萄酒击败了来自法国波尔多的产品。
评审团对中法两地的各五种葡萄酒进行了鉴赏，最终来自山西怡园酒庄（Grace Vineyard）的一瓶赤霞珠得分最高，这一结果令人震惊。有评论认为，此番宁夏葡萄酒的胜出让人联想起1976年的一次比赛，当时美洲（也被称为”新 世界”）出产的葡萄酒首次击败欧洲传统霸主。
出产自宁夏和山西的葡萄酒一举拿下前五名中的头四个席位，而法国只有一瓶来自波尔多拉菲酒庄（Lafite vineyard）的梅多克获得了第五名。
所有参加本次评比的葡萄酒都产自2008年或2009年，在中国的售价价格都在200元至400元人民币之间，但这一评比标准让中方占了便宜，因为中国对进口葡萄酒征收48%的惩罚性关税，这造成法国参赛酒的实际价格要比中国酒便宜不少。
尽管如此，波尔多葡萄酒专家西比勒（Nathalie Sibille）还是对中国葡萄酒赞赏有加，认为它们的表现”非常非常好”，并认为宁夏地区的葡萄酒业潜力巨大。
中国近年来葡萄酒生意火爆，现在已经成为全世界最大的波尔多葡萄酒客户。分析家预言，中国将在20年内超越美国成为世界最大的葡萄酒消费国。
大部分的中国葡萄酒都是大批量生产的，质量较差。但专家表示，现在一些中国酒庄已经能够酿造优秀的葡萄酒，尤其是在宁夏地区。
法国奢侈品集团LVMH下属的葡萄酒和烈酒经销商酩悦·轩尼诗（Moet Hennessy）表示今年开始计划在宁夏地区创立其在中国第一家酒庄，专门生产气泡酒。
而在今年的伦敦品醇客世界葡萄酒大赛（Decanter World Wine Awards）中，宁夏贺兰晴雪酒庄加贝兰2009年份被评为价格10英镑以上组别中的”最佳波尔多式葡萄酒”。而本周三的评酒活动也是由这一赛事负责推广的。
35年之前，一位名叫斯蒂文·斯普利尔（Steven Spurrier）的英国葡萄酒商组织了一次”盲测”评酒会，当时还籍籍无名的美国加利福尼亚纳帕山谷的葡萄酒打败了一些法国上等葡萄酒，造成轰动。美国葡萄酒的后来居上打破了欧洲长久以来的霸主地位和优越感。
怡园酒庄 Grace Vineyard － 山西省太谷县
网址：http://www.grace-vineyard.com/怡园酒庄起步于1997年，由祖籍福建的印尼华侨陈进强建立。在建立怡园酒庄之前，陈先生已经是一个成功的商人，他拥有香港巍华集团投资有限公司。
作为山西精品葡萄酒庄的趟路者，怡园酒庄是第一个以家族酒庄模式为理念的经营模式，秉承了“只有家族才能作长线的计划，一代接一代地孕育出好酒”的理念。怡园遵循小作坊的态度，葡萄园中的大量工作都是人工完成，以尊重传统的态度，谨慎而完美的严格把关每一处细节。
2010年11月4日，在香港公布了国际葡萄酒及烈酒竞赛结果(HKIWSC)。 怡园酒庄参赛的作品有总共有5款，而且全都得奖，怡园深蓝（Deep Blue）更是在亚洲产区竞赛中更获得Best Wine from China 大奖 (中国产区最佳葡萄酒)。
怡园庄主珍藏红葡萄酒(Grace Vineyard, Chairman’s Reserve)，2009年份
93％赤霞珠，7％梅洛；酒精度：13％
宝石红色，芳香集中而精练，红色水果香气突出，香料气息浓郁而内敛，似主要为法国新桶味，又散发咖啡豆、摩卡甚至烟草气息，中度以上酒体，口感辛辣、精瘦，骨骼清奇，丹宁强劲，回味久远。89分。
点评：这款酒是怡园的顶款，也是今天所有酒款中我认为品质最好的！这款酒在平衡度上已经炉火纯青，无论是香气，还是口感，给予我的是一种天衣无缝的 融合；在复杂度上，红色与黑色水果、莓子气息浓郁，有完美融合了橡木桶的气质，在提炼木桶气息上，也不仅仅是烟熏或者香草，而是揉合了丰富的烘焙、香料、 咖啡豆、烟草的气息，馥郁而持久。适合5－10年后饮用。这款酒也显得过于精瘦（这款酒出自一个每天跑步10公里的酿酒师之手，一点都不奇怪！），口感上 过于压迫，辛辣感十足；静待时间对丹宁的柔化吧，拭目以待！
怡园深蓝干红葡萄酒(Grace Vineyard, Deep Blue Red)，2009年份
轻宝石红色，红色莓子气息，胡椒、雪松味明显，赤霞珠的青椒特点与覆盆子气息交织，丹宁强劲，整个酒款似乎仍比较封闭，须待三五年后饮用方佳。 86－90分。（我很寄希望于时间的洗礼可以让这款酒更趋完美。从现在的品饮来看，酒体和复杂度均显单薄，但香气与口感又非常收敛和精致；在开瓶6＋小时 后，香气弥坚，口感依旧饱满。我寄希望三五年后再来品评时，这支酒能带来惊喜。）
点评：怡园的新款，颜色、酒体上与其他酒款相比偏轻，但在气味与口感上一点不逊色。采用100％法国新橡木桶陈酿，以赤霞珠味主导，混入少量品丽珠与蛇龙珠，结构刚劲有力。怡园似乎在使用法国新橡木桶方面不遗余力，不知为何一味依赖于此呢？
银色高地 Silver Heights － 宁夏省贺兰山 Mount Helan, Ningxia
网址：http://www.everwines.com/宁夏省的贺兰山似乎是最近一轮中国葡萄园投资最热门的省份。这里的气候比东部沿海的山东更为干燥，山东是众多现代首批葡萄园的所在地。而冬季的气温 又不像西部偏远的新疆穆斯林区，很少降到生命线以下，在那里每年秋季必须将葡萄藤埋起来才能存活，而且距离中国主要的葡萄酒饮用人口中心又太遥远。
在各种各样的热钱纷涌向宁夏的时候，银色高地无疑是这个产区最大的亮点。银色高地的由高源(Emma Gao)创建，她是中国极少数女性酿酒师酿造的，曾经在波尔多受过专业学习。目前，银色高地由桃乐丝代理分销，它的旗舰产品“银色高地阙歌红葡萄酒 (The Sumit)”，近两年更是未正式推广便已售罄。
银色高地阙歌红葡萄酒(Silver Heights, the Summit) 2009年份
80％赤霞珠，10％品丽珠，10％蛇龙珠。酒精度：14％
深宝石红色，芳香浓郁，以梅干、黑加仑子气息为主，兼具胡椒等香料的芬芳；口感柔顺，黑色莓子主导，辅以雪松、香草等，丹宁浓重，酒体深沉，是一款浓郁饱满的红酒，回味较长。88分。
点评：银色高地的这款酒以浓郁见长，酒体和色泽都很浑厚，是很好的萃取了成熟果实的特质，辅以良好的橡木桶熟成的一款好酒，很有新世界的风格。在风韵上，以雄性特质见长，略欠精致的神韵。酒精度虽较高，被包藏在丰厚的香气与口感中，不显山不露水。
贺兰晴雪酒庄 He lan Qing Xue Vineyard － 宁夏省贺兰山东麓 Mount Helan, Ningxia
宁夏贺兰晴雪酒庄始建于2005年，一期种植葡萄品种园100亩，引进法国等地16个葡萄品系，所酿造的葡萄酒品牌包括“加贝兰”、“贺兰晴雪” 等，酒庄的名字源于古宁夏八景之首的“贺兰晴雪”，据说古时候在六月夏日碧蓝的晴空之下，灰褐色的贺兰山巅峰被雪白的白雪覆盖，背衬着碧蓝的天空，色彩反 差很大，景象非常壮观。贺兰晴雪酒庄可能是中国最小的酒庄，却立志酿造中国最佳葡萄酒,曾经获得2007首届烟台国际葡萄酒质量大赛一等奖，2008第三 届亚洲葡萄酒质量大赛金奖，2008第九届中国葡萄酒与烈酒评酒会阴奖，成为当地高质量葡萄酒的标志。 该酒庄酿造的加贝兰2009年份，赢得品酒杂志《品醇客》(Decanter World Wine Awards）2011年度世界葡萄酒大赛金奖；这是中国葡萄酒界至今赢得的最高奖项，反映了新酿酒区的崛起，就在宁夏。 加贝兰是一款赤霞珠、美乐和蛇 龙珠的混酿，目前仅在中国市场出售，零售价约13英磅。酿酒葡萄产自宁夏省，年产量约20,000瓶。地理位置：位于宁夏银川（北京西路西夏广场110国道右拐100米左侧）的贺兰晴雪酒庄，与西夏王陵仅在咫尺，与著名的沙漠旅游风景区“沙湖”不到一小时车程。
加贝兰赤霞珠干红葡萄酒(Jia Bei Lan Cabernet Dry Red Wine)，2009年份
今年9月英国品醇客杂志给宁夏贺兰晴雪葡萄酒庄出品的“加贝兰”干红葡萄酒获得10英镑以上波尔多风格红葡萄酒国际金奖。此酒是2009年的赤霞 珠，外文（Cabernet dry red wine,翻译：解百纳干红），酒的颜色呈中深酒红色，有少许杂质，酒闻起来有阴干葡萄和阴干的青草和少许青椒的混合气息，给我感觉是有着过熟葡萄和未成 熟葡萄混在一起酿造的，入口有青涩的单宁混合着成熟的单宁，酒体中等，回味中带出的甜味有些腻口。如果给此酒评分，我会给84分。
没有评论:
发表评论