New data has shown the Ideal Wine Company that China has now displaced France to become the country with the second largest vineyard area in the world.
The rise of Chinese wine
Once upon a time, China wouldn’t have even been a blip on the Ideal Wine Company’s radar. The People’s Republic never used to have much of a taste for wine. However, people across the one billion-plus strong nation are starting to develop a liking for our favourite tipple.
In 2013 China became the biggest market on the planet for red wine consumption, according to the Guardian. Furthermore, the emerging global superpower is evolving into an up and coming wine maker. The BBC reported that China was the eighth largest producer of wine in the world, as of 2013, and is predicted to become the largest by 2016.
China becomes second largest vineyard area in the world
New statistics from The International Organisation of Vine and Wine (IOVW) suggest that the People’s Republic is now well and truly on its way to becoming the largest wine producer on the planet. The IOVW has said that the Asian nation now has 799,000 hectares of land devoted to vineyards.
This makes China the second largest country on the planet in terms of land devoted to grape growing. The People’s Republic still trails Spain, which devotes 1.92 million hectares to vineyards but it did edge out France, a nation which is often regarded as the best wine producer in the world. Many of the Ideal Wine Company’s finest vintages come from France, especially Bordeaux.
China has a lot of potential
The amazing thing about the IOVW’s latest report is that it shows that wine production growth is far from over in the People’s Republic. It has the potential to eclipse Spain.
The report showed that the world’s largest growing economy accounted for a staggering 11% of global territory given over to vineyards in the past year. This is a meteoric rise from 4% in the year 2000. The sheer size of the country suggests that China has a lot more land it can devote to grape production.
One to watch
These figures show that China is the one to watch in terms of wine production. It already has more vineyards than France. At the Ideal Wine Company we truly believe that it won’t be long before they have more vineyards than Spain. China is making its mark on the world of viticulture and is evolving itself into a true wine superpower on the global stage.
