Chateau culture spreads in Tonghua

Tonghua, sitting between 40 and 43 degrees north latitude, is one of the most suitable places in China to grow amur grapes. The grape production in the city can reach 58,000 tons per year and the local wine made from the grapes has been sold to more than 30 countries and regions including the US and Australia.

Meanwhile, nearly 20 wine chateaus have been built in the city as part of the development of tourism and wine culture since 2015, making it a good place for people to take a sip of wine and enjoy leisure time.

Ji'an, a city located at the Southeast of Tonghua, welcomes tourists every festival. Visitors to the chateaus always appreciate the well-grown grapes, pick grapes themselves, and taste the newly-produced wine.

Sun Yanfeng, head of Jian Specialty Bureau, introduced that the chateaus are not places for visitors to taste various kinds of wine, but also for people to know about wine culture.

"Wine chateaus used to be perceived as places that can only be visited overseas by high-end consumers. Nowadays, the perception is undergoing changes among Chinese wine drinkers and their demands for chateaus are on the rise," said Liu Shuhang, an official at the Development and Promotion Department of Tonghua.

"Consumers need to enjoy wine tasting while knowing more about wine production and culture," he added.

It's a common consensus among the wine industry in Tonghua that the industry should expand its industry beyond brewing and establish itself into an industrial chain.

Liang Zhengkui, head of a chateau in Tonghua said he believes that chateaus should expose visitors to wine culture.

"The chateau will be built into a complex encompassing everything from grape growing, wine making and sales, to vineyard sightseeing, a wine culture experience, and catering," Liang stressed.

Wang Jun, chief winegrower at the Tonghua-based subsidiary of China Tontine Wines Group, also suggested that wine producers should combine wine with tourism and make wine tasting a unique cultural indulgence by inviting consumers to their chateaus.

Liu is quite optimistic about the outlook of win chateaus in Tonghua.

"Despite the fact that the scale and number of our wine chateaus are still limited compared with chateaus in the Bordeaux region of France," Liu said, "Chateaus with unique Chinese characteristics are expected to attract an increasing number of wine lovers worldwide."