Winemaker Notes
Deep dark color. On the nose aromas of cold chimenea, Mysore sandalwood, Dhofar incense, fresh crushed ripe strawberries, plum and candied cherry. On the palate it is voluptuous and spicy, very seductive and round with extremely soft dense tannins and long salty mineral finish.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Now we see the reality of what this is. Dark berries, blackcurrants, wet earth, spices and slate. Full-bodied yet so in check and refined. Cool fruit and fine tannins. Glorious. Pretty fruit. So together. Needs three or four to come around but beautiful.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Ao Yun is a blend of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon and 21% Cabernet Franc. It has a deep ruby appearance—even deeper than the 2016—and reveals an immediately complex, perfumed nose of lifted cassis, bramble and black plum fruit with subtle pyrazine notes (green bell pepper, touch of blackcurrant leaf) combining with well-integrated new oak notes of clove, smoke and toast. The 2015 Ao Yun shows even greater concentration than the impressive 2016 vintage, with ripe, fine-grained tannins, harmonious alcohol and some buoyant acidity. This has marked length with a stylish, polished finish. It will be fascinating to see how the 2015 and 2016 vintages evolve alongside each other in the years to come. The 2015 currently looks as though it might have the edge on the 2016, but there is much to appreciate in both wines. The 2015 is certainly more in line stylistically with the 2017 vintage, which has similarly glossy and robust fruit and will be similarly age-worthy.
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Wine Enthusiast
Heady aromas of black currant, black pepper, baking spices and eucalyptus set the scene for flavors of dark plum, cherry, black tea and ground pepper, with a touch of smoke. Tannins come on a touch strong at first, then subside into a mellow, spice-filled finish. Overall, the feeling on the palate is very luxurious, with a visceral sense of minerality in the mouth.
Cellar Selection
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
China’s wine regions are spread throughout the country. In terms of volume, China ranks among the world’s top 10 wine producing nations. Interest in wine (particularly red wine) is growing here, especially among the younger generations.
China’s most lauded appellation, Helan Mountain, on the border of the popular region of Ningxia, close to the Yellow River, is known for Cabernet blends. Ningxia as well as Shanxi are at higher elevations, receive a lot of sunshine and experience large diurnal temperature variation, ideal conditions for winegrowing. The humid, eastern coastal regions of Shangdong and Hebei Province are responsible for over half of China's yearly wine production. Here the key variety of Chinese wine is called Cabernet Gernischt, which has proven to actually be Carmenere.
Though China has been producing wine from its own native varieties for 1,500 years, the Chinese wine industry didn’t gain any real inertia until the end of the 19th century when about 100 European varieties arrived. Today many international companies (Moet Hennessy, Remy Cointreau, Pernod Ricard, Torres and Barons de Rothschild) have a stake in the country’s Chinese wine scene. However, the Chinese government continues to invest, now exceeding foreign funding.