Chinese millennials recently developed an interest on French and Chilean wine, based on the observation of Yin Yanling, an instructor of wine appreciation in Shenzen and Hong Kong.
He observed that there is an increase of enrollees in his classes. These 20-to-30-something individuals are mostly affluent bank analysts and engineers. Yin runs a 16-hour wine appreciation class and charges 4,800 yuan per student.
Yin said, "We launched this program in 2014 for our friends, and new faces kept turning up."
There is a new "untapped market" among Chinese wine enthusiasts composed of people from 20s to late 30s, also called millennials. This is an emerging market that is different from the rich, middle-aged connoisseurs who mostly consume wines like Bordeaux and Burgundy.
These millennials are also called "developing drinkers." These are consumers who buy wine more frequently and led a surge in wine sales.
According to British-based International Wine and Spirit Research (IWSR), China consumed 162 million cases yearly from 2009 to 2013. This made China fifth in the global wine market.
However, Chinese President Xi Jinping banned extravagance in 2013, causing wine sales to drop. The price of Bordeaux dropped by as low as 41 percent. This was based on the survey conducted by Liv-Ex, a wine swapping and market analyst.
Despite government's order, many young professionals are getting more interested in wine education, said Bruno Baudry, CEO of ASC Wines.
Millennials' deepening interest in wine helps in their careers. According to Jo Purcell, managing director of Farr Vinters Asia, "for some young working professionals, enrolling in a wine course is also an investment in their career and a way of mixing with people with money."
Aaldering, a Dutch wine company, projected that wine drinkers will rise to 40 million in China alone.