Spanish wine plonks itself on China’s top table

Vi-yes: The Chinese are developing a taste for Spanish wine

The Chinese may not be the fashion bearers for a new age, but their collective purchasing might mean that if they take a fancy to something, that something had better start upping production, sharpish.

A few years ago it was the Chinese who wrestled Britain’s Burberry brand from the false nails of the country’s chav-set, and now it seems that Spanish wine is next up for an orient express checkout – figures from Chinese customs reports show that imports of Spanish wine are up by 40 per cent in a year, placing the plonk third behind wine from France and Australia…

As any self-respecting wine aficionado will know, Spanish wine can hold its own in the most revered company. Across Europe and the USA, Rioja and Tempranillo roll off the tongue just as easily as Pinot Noir or Chardonnay, but Chinese tastes have tended to err on the side of tradition. Hence, French wine has had its own way for far too long.

Along with Australia, Spanish wine is now making headway throughout mainland China, thanks to a combination of cost and awareness.

“The Chinese are now searching for wine other than from France because they are more educated about wine from other countries,” Mabel Lai, Hong Kong wine expert told the South China Morning Post.

The best Spanish wines are also half the price of top-ranked French wines, with no discernible difference in quality or taste. In light of this news, French winemakers have pledged to up their game, but the fact that Spanish winemakers have just helped make Hong Kong’s wine auction the largest in the world – overtaking New York – by acting as official partners of the three-day event is a real statement of intent that should please winemakers throughout Spain.

“Wines from Spain are getting bigger and we are travelling around the world and letting people know about Spanish wine,” Carlos Moreno, export manager for Spanish winemaker Bodegas d. Mateos told the Chinese newspaper. “The potential of the Chinese market is huge.”

In fact, wine consumption in China has soared in the past few years, growing by 142.1 per cent between 2007 and 2011. Last year, 159.25 million cases of wine were consumed, with experts predicting that the Chinese will get through 252 million cases of wine by 2016. In contrast, however, America consumed 330 million cases of wine in 2012, just edging out France, which consumed 320 million cases, as the top wine-consuming nation.

On a per capita basis, people from the Vatican drink the most wine per head each year, knocking back an impressive 62.2 litres each in 2011. Andorra and Luxembourg are close behind, with France in fourth place (45.61 litres per head). Surprisingly, Spaniards are some way down the list, drinking just 21.58 litres per person each year.

The Chinese, in comparison, currently drink a mere 0.62 litres of wine each a year – yes, less than a bottle each (aka, Monday night). So China has quite some way to go until it can match the world’s largest consumers, but tastes are changing, and Spanish wine is increasingly on the menu.