Helan Qingxue is a small estate in the Yinchuan sub-region of Ningxia with an outsized place in the history of Chinese wine. It was founded in 2005 by Rong Jian and Wang Fengyu, two figures of the local wine industry, with Zhang Jing as winemaker from the start and Professor Li Demei, one of China's most influential wine scholars, as consultant.
The name comes from 贺兰晴雪, 'clear skies and snow on the Helan Mountains', a classical description of the snow-capped peaks that rise behind the vineyards.
The trophy that changed everything
In 2011 the estate's Jia Bei Lan Grand Reserve 2009 won the International Trophy for Bordeaux-style blends at the Decanter World Wine Awards in London, beating gold medal wines from around the world. At the time Ningxia was so little known that the team had to ask for the region to be added to the entry form. The win made Helan Qingxue famous overnight and drew the attention of the wine world to Ningxia.
In the vineyard
The first 13 hectares were planted in 2005 with Cabernet Sauvignon from Hebei Province; the vineyard has since doubled in size. In 2013 the Cabernet was replanted with French CS169 clones grafted onto 5BB rootstock, and Pinot Noir is planted to clone 777. Like every vineyard in Ningxia, the vines are buried each winter, so they rarely live beyond about twenty years before their trunks break from the yearly bending.
Classification
In the Ningxia winery classification, Helan Qingxue was promoted from Fourth to Third Growth.