Welcome. This is a website dedicated to keeping readers current with international wine markets. We strive to keep readers up to date with interesting news and opinions from across the wine industry. Since we deal in Asian markets content will be slightly focused on related news and events relating to markets in China, Singapore, HK, Taiwan, Korea and Japan.
Reuters Small Business presents expansion pitches from upstarts across the country:
The average consumer doesn't often think about how their favorite toothbrush ends up in their local shop, but for the five founders of Nulogy, the process of bringing products from idea to marketplace has become their expertise.
Armed with a web-based management software, the company has been helping major brands in the U.S. and Canada to work more effectively since 2001.
Now co-founder Jason Tham says they are looking to expand their business beyond North America.
Sorry folks. As they say, "there's no such thing as a free lunch." If you clicked into this site from some a search you just made on Google expecting to find a copy of this report for free, you have come to the wrong place.
Nonetheless, as a website which strives to keep readers current on wine markets in Asia I thought it would be a nice to share the existence of such a report with readers involved in the South Korean Wine Market. The report is described as follows:
The Wine in South Korea industry profile is an essential resource for top-level data and analysis covering the wine industry. It includes detailed data on market size and segmentation, plus textual and graphical analysis of the key trends and competitive landscape, leading companies and demographic information.
Scope * Contains an executive summary and data on value, volume and/or segmentation * Provides textual analysis of the industry’s recent performance and future prospects * Incorporates in-depth five forces competitive environment analysis and scorecards * Includes a five-year forecast of the industry * The leading companies are profiled with supporting key financial metrics * Supported by the key macroeconomic and demographic data affecting the market
Highlights * Detailed information is included on market size, measured by value and/or volume * Five forces scorecards provide an accessible yet in depth view of the market’s competitive landscape * Market shares are covered by manufacturer or brand
Why you should buy this report * Spot future trends and developments * Inform your business decisions * Add weight to presentations and marketing materials * Save time carrying out entry-level research
Market Definition
The wine market consists of fortified wine, sparkling wine and still wine. The market is valued according to retail selling price (RSP) and includes any applicable taxes. Any currency conversions used in the compilation of this report have been calculated using constant annual average exchange rates. Market shares by company or distribution channel are calculated on the basis of market volume in 2008.
Asia-Pacific comprises Australia, China, Japan, India, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.
The report runs about £145.00, yes that's right, British Pounds... not US Dollars.
The article discusses the failure of official promotional strategies of Brand South Africa wines.
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No matter from which angle you look at it, however, SA wines are promoted too irregularly in China, if at all, and for the most part China's burgeoning middle class has little inkling that our country produces any wine, never mind being a source of excellent wines.
French wines sell themselves with little effort due to an enviable country brand positioning they hold in China. Australian wines, especially the Jacob's Creek brand, is advertised so extensively that its posters could rival Coca-Cola billboards in Africa. All this while this year we celebrate 350 years of SA producing wine, yet nothing is being done to generate awareness of this in China.
[South Africa Vineyard ~ http://www.ultimatehideaways.co.uk/]
Yet while this logic is apparent to most, SA wine exporters seem either completely ignorant of China's growing consumption market - or are so utterly scared of the foreign of foreign markets - that it is not even considered. Of equal concern are the companies already exporting to China that do little to promote their brands in the local market; for them I have included some takeaway points.
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Much like Mir Global's own efforts in promoting Argentinean wines, a major challenge has been to educate the Chinese consumer on the mere fact South Africa even produces wine.
The author describes one particular situation where Cloof Wines of South Africa combined cultural and historical education with a marketing event they hosted at a South African restaurant in Beijing. Upon learning about South Africa in such a situation, the culturally curious Chinese became eager to sample a "exotic" bottle from a place like South Africa.
Cloof Wines is a South African company which has signed up with a large Chinese distributor but is also seeking further opportunities in other market segments within China that the distributor does not target.
From our experience we feel this is the ideal way to approach entering the Chinese market with a novel and niche product like South African wine. The distributor instantly enables a particular wine to begin branding itself with the Chinese consumer. If your wine has found success, or a potential client sees that you are already operating and have a presence in the market, he/she will be far more willing to do business with a entity it already perceives as legitimate and having experience in the China market.
I definitely suggest reading this article, which inspired this small analysis at Globowines. It presents two clear wine marketing strategies for the China market--one which the author of the article feels to have succeeded, and the other which he feels has failed.
~ Bennett Reiss - International Trade Consultant at Mir Global Marketing LLC
[Source] --The Indian Wine Academy *** Please note. Only 1-2 paragraph excerpts from the different topics Seth covers in his article of China's domestic wine industry have been posted here.To access the full article click here.
[Pingyao, China -- Shaanxi Province 2006]
China is associated with a variety of things, from food to martial arts but few in India link it with wine. However, the world's fifth largest vineyard area and the seventh largest in production, according to OIV, the importance of Chinese Wines is growing, writes Rajiv Seth.
China has a long history of wine production. Chinese literature recounts the introduction of grapes from modern Uzbekistan during the Han dynasty (136 to 121 BC) and their planting in Xi'an, the legendary eastern terminus of the Silk Road near China's Yellow River.
The Modern Era
The modern wine era in China began with the communist takeover in 1949. State-owned wineries were built and expanded. The term wine traditionally has a different meaning in Chinese culture than in the west. Jiu, which literally means alcohol, was used on all labels until recently, not allowing for the distinction among, alcoholic beverages. Rice-based alcohol is also referred to as wine. Modern Chinese winemakers now make an effort to specify grape wine by labeling with the term butajiu. The term wine is still widely misunderstood in China.
In 1978, Chinese government opened the door for the modernization through international involvement and by emphasizing wine consumption to help curb the national thirst for alcoholic beverages. Indeed, the Communist Party decreed that consumption should change from grain liquor to fruit liquor in 1987. The 1990s saw a decline in state-owned wineries, but an increase in foreign investment, modernization, and western technology.
The Current Scenario
More then 100 wineries have been established since the National People's Congress in 1966 decreed that Chinese must reduce their consumption of grain alcohol, and switch to wine. Since then, the government has encouraged state-run 'wine manufacturing plants' to grow western grape varieties...
The Domestic Wine Industry
China has more than 300 wineries. Most of this development has been in areas near Beijing, in the eastern maritime region of Shandong. The industry is dominated by six large producers who account for about 55% of the total production. The average capacity of Chinese wineries is approximately 2000 tons, with 70% of the producers under 1000 tons. The more predominant wineries include Changyu, Great Wall, Dynasty, and Dragon Seal, all producing over 10,000 tons. Wine production in China in 2005 was 434,000 tons, an increase of 14% from 2004.
Standards and Appellations
Some wineries still use flavor essence, ethyl alcohol, sweetening, agents, and water to produce wines. There have been attempts to establish standards like an AOC type appellation system. New standards and types are evolving, including premium wine and ice wine which is produced in the extremely cold Xinjiang region and is available in abundance in stores in most big cities. Regulations are being put into effect to control raw materials, regional identity, variety, and vintage...
Vines and Viticulture
China has 26 indigenous vine species and hundreds of grape varieties. These are used to produce mainly low-end wines. Widespread introductions from Russia, including Muscat along with Italian Riesling, make acceptable, if not noteworthy products. Among the most common are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and the mysterious Cabernet Gernischt.
Shandong Province is roughly at the same latitude as California. Cool Pacific breezes moderate the temperature, which ranges from about 3°C in winter to 26°C during the summer. Monsoons come from the South China Sea, although spring is usually dry, and summers and autumns wet...
Winemaking Process
Virtually every winemaker harvests grapes based on sugar; measures of TA, pH. Aroma evaluation are not of common concern. Fermentation is conducted in modern stainless steel, concrete, French 200-L barrels, or in some cases very old wooden (oak) fermentors, with or without temperature control. Red wine cap management is not a large concern and consists almost entirely of pumping over. Practices such as cold soak, bleeding, and delestage are not practices and none of the producers is involved in the process maceration...
Dry Wines and food pairing
Dry wines have over taken sweet and semi-sweet wine production in the past 12 years. Sales of still red wines represent about 70 percent of the total. This seemed odd, since Chinese food does not go well with red wines. However, food and wine pairing, is not part of Chinese culture.
Marketing a dream or nightmare
China can be considered both a western wine marketer's dream and nightmare. Wine consumption is rising faster than domestic production, currently allowing imports to make up the balance. Beginning January 1, 2001, Chinese tariffs on wine have fallen from 44.5% to 14%. This dramatic reform was brought on as part of China's accession to the WTO, and has substantially changed the domestic wine market. Given the traditionally low incomes, the majority of wines must be sold at low prices- a problem in light of the fact that taxes account for about 50% of the retail price of imported wine. Domestic wine can sell for about 20 RMB/L ($4), with the very expensive ones at about $20.
About the author -- Rajiv Seth became the first Indian in the year 1987 to receive a gold medal from wine and sprint education trust, London. Presently he is making continues efforts in educating the lab assistants of a number of wineries on procedures of micro vinification through his manuals.
Golden Dragon Holdings, Inc. is a Chinese company which conducts the majority of its food and beverage business in the Asia-Pacific Rim economies. The company's functions as a importer, exporter and distributor of staple, organic, specialty, gourmet and foreign foods and beverages.
This week, Gold Dragon Holdings announced that it had registered its new trademark for its private label wine, "Endless Wines." Both the red and white wines are made from a blend of exclusive grapes from Spain's Rioja region.
The company mission statement is simple. "Good food, high-quality food, wholesome, healthy, and delicious food". Gold Dragon Holdings strives to help independent producers and growers worldwide of fine quality foods, introduce their products to China and other areas in the Asia region.
Chief Operating Offiicer, Mr. Cesar Cuenca explained in this article"We have identified a unique niche in the wine market in China, we call this niche the 100RMB retail wine market. Typically imported wine in China sells at a higher end of the wine market, we have selected exceptional grapes to start producing high quality red and white wines at reasonable cost to consumers. Good wine does not mean expensive wine."
I highly recommend checking out the full article linked here and in the above paragraph because it is full of the company's assessment of various elements of the China wine market.
Current State:
China is a large emerging country with an amazing potential of wine consumption. The influence of western eating, drinking habits and rising average incomes have been key factors in the fast development of wine market in China. China has stepped into one of the ten largest wine consumption markets in the world. The value of the market has more than doubled over the last five years and a lot of signs are showing a bright future of China wine market.
Growth Rate:
What greatly spurs the speedy growth of imported wines from wine producers around the world, such as France, Italy, Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Austria, US and some other European traditional wine-producing countries. The annual growth rate of imported wines is up to 13-15%.
Targeted customers:
Wine is now becoming the fashionable drink for the wealthy younger generations in China's cities, and the "badge" drink for China's wealthiest elite. With about 600 million young Chinese exploring new types of alcoholic drinks, the potential market for sales of wine in the future is so great without any doubt.
Wines of the New World have stolen the spotlight at this years Decanter World Wine Awards in Covent Garden, London. Of the 24 international trophies, 15 went to New World, 9 to the old world.
“Chile has proven itself a producer of some of the finest Sauvignon, Riesling, Pinot Noir and Cabernet blends in the world,” writes Adam Lechmere of Decanter.com.
Other highlights from the event include:
International Trophies for Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Pinot Noir and Bordeaux Varietals all went to Chile at a glittering dinner in the Floral Hall at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.
The trophy for best Sauvignon Blanc Over £10 went to Undurraga's TH from San Antonio, which judges described as 'Crisp, herbal, grassy and zesty, appealing elegant and expressive.'
Cono Sur's Riesling won the Under £10 in that category, for its Bio Bio Valley Reserva 2008, with its 'racy nose of lime, honey, grapefuit and ripe peach with hints of mineral and kerosene'.
And for the fourth time in the past five years the Red Single Varietal trophy Under £10 went to an Argentinian Malbec: this year, the Malbec aka Rodolfo Sadler from Opi Sadler in Mendoza.
Mir Global Marketing Co., Specializing in fine wines from around the world.
Click here to visit our company website. Our current catalog includes new wines are from Argentina and Chile, which have have been especially chosen for the China and Singapore market
Ishkoman, I’m Coming – Day 4: Dude Party
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We picked up the net and took off our Kimeez shirt which we wrapped around
our heads to keep it close and block the sun. Wazir, our friend and close
relati...
