Napa Vintners Head to China

Our international NVV road warrior, Cessa Beckett, is in China with vintners this week!

Day 1 Quite an experience and very successful. Hangzhou is on the south east coast of China at the southern end of the Yangtze River Delta so there are lots of lakes around the city. A very pretty place with lots of trees and flowers and a population of about 7 million.

Our first seminar got underway slowly – no one gets here on time – but eventually we had 30+ attendees, which was as expected. Our two events in the evening were extraordinary - eight vintners went to pour at Ruby Red, a high end retailer in the city. The 80 guests were all under age 35. Another ten of us went to the Blossom Water Museum Hotel for the Charity Dinner & Auction where another 80 wine-loving consumers joined us, plus Tim Hanni, MW (from Napa) who is employed by the Blossom Group to train them about wine and just happened to be there this weekend. This event was a true Chinese banquet experience – the entire dinner was served on massive lazy Susans in the middle of each large table. After a presentation about the Blossom Company, the charity and more, we ate dinner and then the auction began. Oh boy! I can’t begin to describe it! Wine auctions are not yet commonplace in China, so this was a different experience than a charity auction in the US. But, the charity helps really, really poor children in rural areas and we raised about $3,000 from our 8 or so wine lots. This could build a whole house in this part of the world! It was a very humbling experience. 

On Monday, we hosted events in Shanghai. We kicked off the day with a workshop for the travelling vintners to help them better understand the China wine market. Mid-day, three of our vintner leaders were interviewed by several Chinese media, including TV. This was followed immediately by the trade and media seminar, which was fabulous with some 50+ attendees – an absolutely full house with a few people standing in the back. Then we had the trade tasting with a full house of 200+ quality trade and media. The day concluded with a consumer tasting with Napa Reserve at the House of Roosevelt, overlooking the Bund. Tomorrow we are hosting an educational seminar for university students during the day and more consumer events in the evening in Shanghai, then it’s off to Beijing and Xi’an by the weekend.

Cessa Beckett

International Marketing Manager

Napa Valley Vintners

Chinese menu selections for Napa Valley wines

The recent receipt of Geograhic Indication Status in China, a landmark protection which will safeguard the use of the Napa Valley name on wines bought and sold in the country, has us thinking about really important issues - like, what Chinese fare should we be whipping up to celebrate?

Thai Beef Salad with Cilantro Lime Dressing and Peanuts.  

From Salads by Peter Gordon. Copyright © 2006 by Peter Gordon

As many people find it challenging to pair wines with Asian foods, we went straight to the source for ideas: the menus from the China trade trips we have led with our vintners. What better inspiration than the dishes Chinese chefs themselves have chosen to pair well with Napa Valley wines like Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon?

If you're a take-out kind of person, look for similar items the next time you peruse the menu at your local Chinese restaurant. If you love being adventurous in the kitchen, click through on each item to some similar, well-rated online recipes to help 'spice up' your next meal.

Thai Beef Salad with Cilantro, Mint, Lime and Peanuts

Mapo Bean Curd, Ground Pork, Chilies

Yeung Chow Friend Rice

Fried Rice Shanghai Style

Steamed Dumplings with Spinach and Shrimp

Getting back to the big picture, the GI Status Napa Valley has obtained in China is a huge stepping stone in protecting the integrity of the Napa Valley name in China and beyond. Join us in celebrating by opening up a bottle of Napa Valley wine and enjoying one of these delicious dishes!

Napa Valley First International Wine Region to Receive Landmark Protection in China

In November 2010,  a delegation from the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine - the Chinese government agency that oversees GI status  - visited the United States and as part of an agricultural tour, spent a day in the Napa Valley.  

The People's Republic of China has announced that Napa Valley has been recognized with Geographic Indication (GI) status in that country. Napa Valley is the first region outside of China to be so recognized with this designation. It provides the pivotal element in consumer protection against wines illegitimately labeled as being from Napa Valley in this important and rapidly expanding market. 

The GI was published in the report by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine which was just released.

"We are thrilled by the news that China, an economic world power and growing wine importer, has decided to grant Napa Valley this status, and we are honored to learn that we are the first winegrowing region outside of that country to achieve it," said Linda Reiff, NVV's executive director. "This is an historic milestone for the Napa Valley appellation and speaks to the global respect for our region's reputation and high-quality wines."

"Having the Chinese government's official recognition protects the integrity of the Napa Valley brand, and does so fairly early-on in our efforts to develop this tremendous market. This is a 'win' for Napa Valley and a 'win' for the Chinese consumer," Reiff said.

As was the case when achieving GI recognition from the European Union, the NVV made the request directly from the trade association to the government. Similarly with the EU, this had not been done before in China. Given the world-wide renown of brand Napa Valley, government officials saw the need and the value for this recognition.

The NVV members and staff worked for many years with the Chinese government to achieve the GI including several face-to-face meetings in Beijing. Meeting the winemakers, learning more about the unique attributes and the limited production of Napa's wines helped officials better understand the importance of this initiative.

"The Chinese market is only going to increase in importance to us in the coming years. We needed to make sure we were safeguarding our brand and its reputation. It's clear that they see the value in this from both the prospective of the producer, but also from the prospective of the consumers in China," said Cakebread Cellars' President Bruce Cakebread, who actively participated in the negotiations.

Read more here.