Xinjiang

Where grapes entered China

Xinjiang was the gateway through which grapes arrived in China. In 2009 researchers published the analysis of a grapevine stem found in the Yanghai Tombs, in the Turpan Basin: radiocarbon dating placed it at nearly 2,300 years old, making it the earliest physical evidence of cultivated Vitis vinifera in the country. A century or two later, the missions of the Han envoy Zhang Qian to Central Asia made the grapes and wine of the Western Regions known in the imperial capital.

Grapes have never left the oases since. Turpan is still synonymous with grapes in China, and Xinjiang is the country's largest grape-growing region, but most of that fruit is eaten fresh or dried. Wine grapes cover only a fraction of the total: recent estimates range from about 14,000 to 20,000 hectares.

A region built by the Corps

Modern winemaking in Xinjiang is closely tied to the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), the state organisation that farms large parts of the region. Its units built the first winery in Turpan in 1959 and founded Yizhu Winery in the Yili Valley in 1964. Large-scale development started in 1997, and after 2002 the industry grew rapidly into four distinct sub-regions.

For decades much of Xinjiang's wine left the region in bulk, to be blended by the large producers of eastern China. Changyu, China's biggest wine company, still buys most of the wine grapes grown around Shihezi, where it opened Chateau Changyu Baron Balboa in 2013. Alongside the giants, a new generation of independent estates such as Tiansai Vineyards and Silk Road Winery has started to show what Xinjiang can do with its own label.

Four sub-regions, four climates

The Tianshan Mountains divide Xinjiang into north and south, and each wine area has its own character. On the northern foothills, around Shihezi and Manas, lies the largest block of wine vineyards in the region, at about 44° north, China's most northerly area for dry wines. South of the range, the Yanqi Basin is one of China's driest vineyards, with about 80 mm of rain a year, its climate softened by Bosten Lake, the country's largest inland freshwater lake. To the west, the Yili Valley is the most humid sub-region, with about 400 mm of rain. To the east, the Turpan-Hami Basin is the hottest and lowest place in China, where grapes reach very high sugar levels.

Burying the vines

As in Ningxia, winters across most of Xinjiang are too harsh for vines to survive above ground. After harvest the vines are pruned, laid down and covered with soil, and in spring they are uncovered again, almost entirely by hand. In the northern foothills, regular winter snow cover gives the vines some extra protection.

Grapes and styles

Cabernet Sauvignon dominates, as in the rest of China, often with Merlot. Marselan is one of Xinjiang's most convincing reds: Tiansai's Skyline of Gobi Grand Reserve Marselan 2017 won a Gold medal with 95 points at the Decanter World Wine Awards 2023. The cooler, higher vineyards of the Yili Valley are known for fresh whites, above all Riesling, while the Yanqi Basin also produces Chardonnay, Welschriesling and traditional-method sparkling wine. In Turpan, the heat and the local grape culture favour sweet and richer styles.