Chinese wine Ao Yun marks another extraordinary vintage this year with the Ao Yun 2017, arguably its most exceptional vintage yet.
China’s Best Red, born from the foothills of the Himalayas in the heart of Yunnan, is a vintage that’s born of a dry, warm winter followed by a cool spring and wet summer.
The vintage 2017 encapsulates the uniqueness of this Chinese cabernet. For the first time, Ao Yun added a drop of Merlot into the mix, giving the latest vintage a rounder and more concentrated excitement to the palate. The colour of this vintage is deep; slightly darker than its predecessors.
It is concentrated but fresh and velvety at the same time as a result of the enhancements made to the optimisation process, customised for the challenging climate. Ao Yun had a crucial month-long window to ripen the grapes before harvest, which adds to the truly special experience of consuming the vintage 2017.
History in the making
Ao Yun’s latest vintage is the brainchild of Ao Yun Estate Director and Winemaker Maxence Dulou, who is so devoted to the making of each bottle of Ai Yun that he moved his entire family to Yunnan in 2013 to accept the challenge of rewriting new rules and scaling new heights of winemaking.
His passion extends beyond winemaking and vineyard management. He takes things one step further in his every move since taking over the responsibility of winemaking and viticulture at the Moët Hennessy Estate. The Vintage 2017 truly showcases his abilities to customise the process of wine-making to complement any climate conditions, while still refining a world-class taste.
“Nobody teaches us the rules. With every vintage, we progress in our wine craftsmanship journey and mastery of the terroir. This is history in the making. If you are looking for something unique to taste or gift, Ao Yun is perfect. The story of Ao Yun is a true adventure, in which anyone can and should be part of,” Dulou says.
The fruit of his labour is a blend of deep, dark colour, bursting with aromas of fresh black fruits like blackcurrant, game, autumn forest floor and a cold fireplace. Take a sip and experience a roundness that gets more concentrated the longer you hold it on the tongue, thanks to the Merlot. Each sip transforms into velvety touches, followed by Ao Yun’s signature long, salty, mineral finish.
Dulou tells, “This vintage is enhanced through a challenging climate, which was compensated thanks to great vineyard and winemaking adaptations. We managed to harvest powerful but ripe grapes and transform them into a concentrated but fresh and velvety wine.”
Ao Yun, which means ‘flying above the clouds’, hails from the legendary city of Shangri-la and presents a story of rich cultural heritage and modern ingenuity. Ao Yun is the brainchild of Estates & Wines, the wine division of Moët Hennessy, with an ambition to explore new and ideal wine-making terroirs in China. The Yunnan region, with its unique climate, was identified as the best location for this endeavour.
Focused on establishing a world-class winery that rewrites the rules of modern winemaking, Ao Yun produces exceptional red wines that matches, if not exceeds, the highest international standards. This beautifully refined wine has persevered through noticeable climate variations from one year to the next, scaling new heights of excellence each year through excellent vineyard management.
Log on to the official Ao Yun website here for more information.
(Source: Ao Yun)