Ningxia China Wineries August 2012 Archives

Visit to Chateau Helan Qingxue and Daylong Organic Vineyards, China

Sept. 1, 2012 – After a buffet breakfast at the hotel we boarded the van for a day of visits to vineyards and wineries located near the foothills of Helan Mountains, about a thirty minute drive from Yinchuan. Unfortunately we woke up to drizzly rain that day, instead of the humid heat of the previous days. Therefore we spent much of the tour huddled under umbrellas and trying to avoid the mud in vineyards. The first stop was the Decanter award winning Chateau Helan Qingxue where winemaker Zhang Jing greeted us very warmly. She is a small, bubbly Chinese lady [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:24:43-08:00September 12, 2012|

Chateau Changyu Moser XV and the Sand Lake of Ningxia, China

Sept. 1, 2012 – On the way to Chateau Changyu Moser XV we passed the famous Western Xia Tombs which look like small stone pyramids and built around 1000 AD. They are part of the unique tourism sites to visit around Yinchuan, including pagodas, beautiful mosques, and the last section of the Great Wall which ends in Ningxia. Chateau Changyu Moser XV will soon become another of the main tourist sites to visit in the region when it opens in October of 2012. It is a beautiful French chateau built on grand standards (see photos) where tourists will be able [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:22:57-08:00September 12, 2012|

Ningxia Wine Auction and Banquet, China

August 31, 2012 – That evening we dressed for the formal banquet dinner and wine auction that was held at another hotel. Over 300 people attended, and once again we were seated at the main table, but this time it was long and rectagnal with 12 different courses served, including this lovely dish of prawns. We were were served the Best of Class White and Red wines, so I was very happy to drink the Xixia King Chardonnay NV and the Jiabeilan Grand Reserve 2009. The media were in attendance with more cameras flashing and video cameras rolling. The winning [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:22:38-08:00September 12, 2012|

Historic Tasting of 39 Ningxia Wines , China

August 31, 2012 – The next morning I awoke very excited because this was the day we were scheduled to do a blind tasting of Ningxia wines. Jancis Robinson, MW had flown in from the UK the evening before and I sat with her at dinner. I have met Jancis on three other occasions and had lunch with her in Napa, and have always found her very friendly and down-to earth. As she was exhausted from her trip, she declined going to the violin concert the evening before, but met us at 8am to walk over to the wine-tasting room [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:22:20-08:00September 10, 2012|

Visiting Silver Heights Winery in Ningxia China with Winemaker Emma Gao

August 31, 2012 - After lunch we boarded the van to drive about ten minutes down narrow dirt roads past poverty stricken shacks to arrive at Silver Heights Winery. Once through the modest gates, we saw a large garden and were greeted by owner, Emma Gao, who had a huge welcoming smile on her face and was followed by her 5-year old daughter’s puppy – a very young and adorable winery dog (see photo). Silver Heights is a true urban winery in the sense that it is located in the city of Yinchuan, even though it’s vineyards are on the [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:21:53-08:00September 10, 2012|

Opening Ceremony of the Ningxia China Wine Festival – Dancing Girls, Conference and Violin Concert

August 30, 2012 - The next morning, after a quick breakfast at the hotel buffet, we took a bus to the opening ceremony of the 1st Helanshan Mountains' East Piedmont Wine Festival. Again our delegation of around eight people was treated like VIPs. We descended from the van to walk on a red carpet and have a flower pinned to our clothes. Multiple photographs snapped many pictures of us as we continued to walk on the red carpet into the large convention center where two lines of more than 100 young women dressed in purple and pink sparkling dresses with [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:21:31-08:00September 10, 2012|

Grand Welcome Banquet in Yinchuan, Ningxia, China

August 29, 2012 - After time to relax in our rooms a bit, we were asked to meet in the hotel lobby at 5:15 in order to walk over to a formal reception with the governor of the Ningxia region. Most of us dressed in formal clothing and arrived at the reception room to find we each had a large white lounge chair to sit in with our name printed on a red sign in both English and Chinese. Translators assisted with the very impressive ceremony of announcing each official – around ten of them, as well as our group [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:21:05-08:00September 10, 2012|

The Ningxia Wine Region and Arriving in Yinchuan at the Yuehai Hotel, China

August 29, 2012 – The next morning we drove to Beijing Airport to catch an Air China flight departing at 10:30am to Yinchuan in the Ningxia Province. Yinchuan is located in the middle of China and is a 1.5 hour flight from Beijing. We met several other professors and wine experts at the airport and traveled in a group to attend the 1st International Wine Festival and Horticulture Conference where we all were scheduled to give presentations. The government of the Ningxia region had invited us and covered all travel expenses. The Ningxia Wine Region Ningxia is one of 8 [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:20:45-08:00September 8, 2012|

A Wine Tasting in Beijing and Dried Pig’s Ear for Dinner

Aug. 28, 2012 – As usual on my first few days in China, I awoke at 4:30 (even with the assistance of a sleeping pill) and couldn’t fall back to sleep. However, it was useful to have some extra time to have a cup of Starbuck’s Via in my room before heading to a tasting of the top 20 wines in the Beijing market priced between 200 – 350 RMB ($30 – 55 US). Qin organized the tasting as part of a research project with the university. It was conducted with wine buyers,sommeliersf and educators working in Beijing and included [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:20:11-08:00September 8, 2012|

Amazing Meal at Da Dong Restaurant in Beijing, China

August 27, 2012 – I am back in China again for the third time in the past six years. It is always enjoyable to arrive in this vibrant country with its ceaseless energy of millions of cars, people, colors, smells, and sounds teeming through the streets. My non-stop 12-hour flight from San Francisco arrived in Beijing at 3:30pm on Monday, August 27 and by 5pm I was already seated at Da Dong Restaurant in downtown Beijing. Qin and Shan met me at the airport and cheerfully pulled my luggage into Shan’s new SUV. Amazingly the traffic on the drive into [...]

By Dr. Liz Thach, MW|2021-01-23T16:19:47-08:00September 3, 2012|