Here’s a good dinner party question for wine lovers: after the big players of Spain, Italy, France and the US, which is the fifth-biggest wine producing country in the world? Well, it’s not, as might be suspected, somewhere else in Europe or the New World. It is China, with an annual production of around 1.7 million tonnes, which is about half that of the US, but still more than what we might think of as bulk producers such as Chile and Australia, whose wines have such a massive presence on our supermarket shelves. In fact, wine has been made in parts of China since very ancient times – although modern industrial production dates largely from the early 20th century – and more than 90 per cent of Chinese wine is consumed internally. 

You can now also follow on your question to your guests with a bottle of Chinese wine, which, equally surprisingly, is available on your local supermarket shelf at Sainsbury’s.

The Changyu Noble Dragon Cabernet Gernischt is made mainly from cabernet gernischt, with some cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc in the north-eastern coastal region of Yantai, where around 40 per cent of China’s wine production is based. Gernischt, grown in China since the 19th century, was originally believed to be a relation of cabernet franc, but more recent analysis has matched it exactly with Chile’s Carménère. The wine itself is rich, dark and chewy, with a rustic edge – and if you like Bordeaux style cabernet sauvignon based blends, you will certainly enjoy this with roast meats. The style should come as no surprise, since the Chinese have been hoovering up vast amounts of Bordeaux for many years now. Traditional merchants Berry Brothers and Rudd, who believe the quality of Chinese wine will eventually equal that of Bordeaux, also have a selection of Chinese wines: The Moser Family Cabernet Sauvignon 2013  is another Bordeaux clone, but bigger and beefier and really well made, because it was created with the help of well-known Austrian wine maker Lenz Moser in the region of Ningxia, south west of Bejing, which he believes compares to Mendoza in Argentina.

But it isn’t all about meaty reds. The Changyu Noble Dragon Riesling  is a terrific iteration of the grape: on the right side of dry, with lovely pear and apple flavours, while the Changyu Golden Valley Ice Wine is pitch perfect dessert wine, with the grapes frozen when ripe, as opposed to botrytised (affected by a beneficial fungus), this is fresh, pure and as clean on the palate as, well, an ice cube.  Made from the vidal blanc grape, of which more later. Do not, however,N be tempted to match any of these wines with your Chinese takeway – they deserve better than that.