Although China still has a long way to go to join the ranks of established wine-making regions like Bordeaux and Napa, LVMH's new red blend from the Middle Kingdom will definitely put China on the luxury wine map, according to an article by Bloomberg.
A bottle of the luxury wine backed by LVMH costs $250--and there are only 24,000 bottles in existence.
Labeled "Ao Yun," which means "roaming above the clouds," the red blend was described by Bloomberg's Elin McCoy as "the best China I've yet sampled."
"The blend of 90 percent cabernet sauvignon and 10 percent cabernet franc is ripely fruity, dark, and powerful, with a spicy tang, a hint of licorice, and a silky smooth texture," McCoy wrote in the article. "It's nearly 15 percent alcohol and tastes unique, something like a combo of a Spanish Ribera del Duero and a Napa cult cab. There's tons of tannin, so it should age for a long, long time. It was a pretty good accompaniment to braised short ribs, too."
The quest to develop Ao Yun started in 2009, when Moet Hennessy CEO Christophe Navarre nursed a dream to establish a spot in China for wine-making. He turned to Australian enologist Tony Jordan to embark on a several-year journey throughout China in search of the "best terroir."
Jordan automatically eliminated provinces where other producers are already deep in creating a Chinese red. Shandong Province was too wet, while Ningxia was too cold. Northwestern Yunnan Province, however, was perfect.
Cabernet vines have already been planted in the region by Tibetan villages back in 2002 in an effort to introduce new crops to the area. Moet Hennessy selected four of these villages, two each situated on both banks of the Mekong River.
Due to the altitude, the climate was perfect for growing and making wine. Sunlight was short, however, as it's only available from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
"Think of it like slow cooking," said Jean-Guillaume Prats, president of Moet Hennessy's Estates and Wines division, in an interview with Bloomberg. "Sunlight over a longer period of time creates intensity and tannins that are very, very silky."
Despite the limited sunlight and the logistical nightmare encountered, Moet Hennesy was successful in creating Ao Yun. Although the quality of the flavor is not commensurate with its price point, wrote McCoy, it certainly puts China on the map as a producer of seriously good wine.