London plays host to the first Chinese wine tasting

London held its first Chinese focused tasting on Wednesday, with the International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) showing of the medal winners from its Asian competition. The 49 wines were all silver or bronze medal winners, and it was the first time in the UK where you could taste a range of Chinese wines. China was the world's seventh largest producer in 2017, according to the OIV (International Organisation of Vine and Wine). The biggest producer was Italy, then France, Spain, USA, Australia, Argentina ahead of China. These countries are all well ahead of South Africa, Chile and Germany which are further down the pecking order.

While many merchants have a wine or two from China, and the wines turn up at events like the London Wine Fair, this is the first opportunity to taste across the range. Red wines were in the majority with only 9 wines being white, and Cabernet Sauvignon certainly dominated - even the whites, with a number of Chardonnay Cabernet blends!