Asia's high society celebrate New Year with fine wine

Demand for fine wine, ahead of Chinese New Year, is soaring, especially for Bordeaux first growths. That's according to Gary Boom, managing director of Bordeaux Index, who said the company was receiving orders from Asia worth up to £500,000 a day as clients gear up to celebrate the Year of the Tiger on the 14th February.

There has been a trend over the last two years for giving fine wines as a gift and this has become the trader's busiest time of year outside en primeur. The surge in interest in Bordeaux suggests that China might become a serious player in the en primeur market during 2010, Boom thinks.