Chinese boutique wineries shine in the inaugural Wynn Signature Chinese Wine Awards 

Fei Tswei, an independent winery from Ningxia in north-central China, emerged as the biggest winner at one of mainland China’s internationally-judged awards on Chinese wines, which was announced on April 13.

The winery, which is located in the Helan Mountain range, took home the top honours — the Best Wine of China — for the Fei Tswei Marselan Reserve 2021 at the inaugural Wynn Signature Chinese Wine Awards organised by luxury integrated resort operator, Wynn Macau.

The wine also came up tops in the Best Red Wine and Best Marselan categories. Fei Tswei clinched a total of six accolades, including the Best Pinot Noir Award for its Pinot Noir Reserve 2020 and Best Red Blends for Chang 2020. Topping it off, the winery also won the Best of Ningxia award for its Marselan Reserve 2021. 

Zhang Yanli, owner of Fei Tswei winery says: “Marselan was one of the first varietals that we grew since the winery started in 2012. We wanted to make a wine that is of quality and will appeal to the Chinese palate.”

Another major winner is Xige Estate, which is also located in Ningxia. Its N28 Chardonnay 2021 was lauded as the Best White Wine and Best Value Wine, a category of wines that are priced at under RMB288 (S$54). Domaine Franco Chinois Petit Manseng 2018 in Hebei received the Best Sweet Wine, Best Petit Manseng and Best of North China accolades.

A total of 23 prizes were given out at a glitzy ceremony held at Wynn Palace, which was attended by around 500 winemakers, winery owners and members of the wine trade. Besides the special category awards, over 420 Chinese wine labels were awarded Gold, Silver and Bronze medals, based on the internationally recognised 100-point wine ratings system. Over 30 wine labels from various wine-producing regions in China, including Shandong, Ningxia, Hebei, Xinjiang and Yunnan were lauded with Gold medal status (95-100 points). 

The winners were decided by a panel of 27 wine experts, including seven Masters of Wines (MW) such as Fongyee Walker, Julian Boulard, Gus Zhu and Andrew Caillard The judging panel also comprises sommeliers, such as Della Tang from Shenzhen’s Ensue restaurant, who was awarded Asia’s Best Sommelier by 50 Best Restaurants last year, Master Sommeliers such as Arnaud Bardary of the Black Sheep restaurant group in Hong Kong and New Zealand’s Cameron Douglas, winemakers, wine educators and hoteliers. 

The panel was chaired by Eddie McDougall, who is the founder of The Flying Winemaker, which produces wines from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The Hong Kong-born wine personality, who has over 20 years of experience in winery and vineyard management, handpicked the members of the judging panel after interviewing over 120 wine professionals. Over 700 entries from over 200 Chinese wineries were submitted for the blind tasting and judging, which took place in early March. 

The ‘Best Wine of China’ 

Commenting on the most prestigious category, the Best Wine of China, was selected from the ‘Best of’ awards categories: Best White, Red, Sweet and Value. These winners were in turn selected from the varietals-based categories that include classic ones such as Chardonnay, Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, and also varietals that are uniquely popular in the Chinese wine market such as Marselan, Petit Manseng and Cabernet Gernischt. 

On Fei Tswei Marselan Reserve 2021 clinching the top prize, McDougall says: “Throughout the six-hour judging process, in which the wine was tasted several times, the wine showed a development of flavour and a consistent level of quality. The wine held its own for the entire judging process (the same bottle was tasted repeatedly for consistency). It is a youthful wine that has good ageability and shows that a wine from China can go head to head with wines from other parts of the world. It has a great tannin profile, and a beautiful vibrant acidity while keeping the wine fresh-tasting and giving the palate a wonderful length.”

Spotlight on Shandong as a wine region

Other key winners include Domaine de Long Dai 2020, which took home the Best of Shandong award. It is a red wine blend by Long Dai, a wine estate developed by the renowned Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite). Cellar master Liang Chen says: “The decision to start a vineyard in Shandong, instead of Ningxia, has paid off. Shandong has a rich history of grape-growing and has slightly warmer winters, so there isn’t a need to bury the vines. We didn’t want to produce another Bordeaux wine or a Chinese Lafite — we want to be a terroir-driven wine that Chinese drinkers can be proud of.” 

Shandong Peninsula, which comprises areas such as Yantai, Weihai and Qingdao, is known for its continental weather and a well-established heritage of producing alcohol (It is also the home of Changyu wines and Tsingtao Brewery.) 

Longting Vineyard, a boutique winery in Pengtai in the Shandong Peninsula won the Best Other Dry White award for the Longting Vineyard Reserve Petit Manseng 2020. A spokesperson shares that the owner decided to produce white wines, despite being in a market dominated by a preference for red wine. She says: “The production of white grapes takes up 50% of our vineyards, as varieties like Petit Manseng are gaining popularity in China.” 

The Wynn Signature Chinese Wine Awards Week also comprised a thought leadership forum and masterclasses, where members of the wine trade discussed issues such as trends and issues in China’s wine industry, such as how Chinese wines can be priced more accessibly and how awareness of Chinese wines can be improved in its native China, where there is still a preference for wines made overseas.

The series of wine events also includes Chinese wine pairing dinners at Wynn Palace’s dining establishments such as Cantonese fine dining restaurant, Chef Tam’s Season, which recently earned a star in the Michelin Guide Hong Kong & Macau 2024 and was ranked No. 49 on the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list in March this year.