China rises, so does Chinese taste and yearning for upper-class lifestyle. Good news for wine dealers et al. From Washington Post (photo: celebration with Great Wall wine at the Great Wall, via travelwithachallenge.com):
Cocooned in a wood-paneled, members-only bar on the 50th floor of a private business club, Yao Yi, a corporate lawyer in Beijing, hunched over her glass, swirling and sipping a 2003 merlot from Washington state.
“It’s quite young. So, not France. There’s no Australian option here. Maybe we can choose New Zealand, it’s close,” Yao said, laughing during a blind wine-tasting quiz at Beijing’s Capital Club.
As wine becomes the latest fashion accessory, MBA students are learning about wine appreciation, executives are asking how to build private wine cellars and tastings have graduated from paper cups to glasses, attracting sell-out crowds. [Full Text]
– Also AP’s Winemakers to Uncork Demand in China
