With inimitable Austrian winemaker Lenz Moser on board since 2013, Chateau Changyu Moser XV has gone full steam ahead into the international market. But its roots lie in the Changyu company, founded in 1892 when Chinese diplomat Zhang Bishi imported more than 500,000 vines from the US and Europe, paving the way for Chinese wine production. 

Lenz’s focus on vineyard management, blending and ageing has taken the quality of these wines to the next level, offering a shining example of Cabernet Sauvignon from Ningxia. Every stage of wine production at Changyu Moser takes place at the chateau, from pressing and fermentation to maturation. The site even has its own museum showcasing Chinese winemaking history. 

Based just west of Beijing in the province of Ningxia – China’s most renowned wine-growing region – growing grapes here can be extreme. While warm and sunny in summer, Ningxia can regularly plummet to -25°C in the winter, meaning expert vine care is needed to avert danger in this extreme terroir. At Chateau Changyu Moser, vines are buried with soil in around November to protect them from the worst of the cold – a master stroke of Lenz’s.