Ao Yun China Winery

Wine stories always connect people, places, land and passion in a fascinating way. And when a French winemaker produces a world-class wine based on the discovery of an Australian oenologist in southern China, it can make you dizzy - even before the first cork has been pulled.

On behalf of the luxury group LVHM, the renowned wine scientist Dr Tony Jordan set out in 2008 to find a suitable terroir for a top wine from China. Four years later, he came across a valley in the mountains of Yunnan at a dizzying altitude with cool temperatures and protection from the rain. Ideal for Cabernet Sauvignon.

The location for Ao Yun was found and winemaker Maxence Dulou felt called to develop and expand it for viticulture - without roads, without electricity, with limited materials and on steep slopes that made the use of machinery impossible. The vineyard was built at an altitude of 2,600 metres. Dulou and the Chinese winegrowers in the team divided the approximately 27 hectares of vineyards on both sides of the Mekong into 900 subplots, grouped according to similar microclimates and soil conditions. There are around 20 different terroirs spread across the four villages of Yunnan.

The grapes from each parcel are harvested individually in two to three passes and vinified separately. Maceration, alcoholic and malolactic fermentation are adapted to the low oxygen content of the high altitude. The result is concentrated wines with freshness, soft tannins and a salty, mineral finish.

photos: Ao Yun China