Wine in China: Imports un-cork big business

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02:41

More and more Chinese are turning to wine as their drink of choice. China is becoming one of the fastest-growing consumer markets in the world. CGTN's Frances Kuo has more on what's un-corked the craze.

It's a sound you're hearing more of in China. A love of wine - spreading across the country.

XU LUYANG WINE LOVER "I choose wine as I feel more like sitting down with friends and chatting, Wine is mainly for conversations, and sit-down chit chats. Strong liquor is more for parties."

According to the international wine and spirit research organization last year, China imported nearly two-point eight billion dollars of wine from around the world.

LI DEMEI, DEP SECY GENERAL WINE BRANCH, CHINA ALCOHOLIC DRINKS ASSOC. "Wine production worldwide is relatively in surplus. Therefore, creating new markets has become a strong desire of wine industries across the world. As a result, wines from various countries have all come to China."

By 2020, China is expected to become the world's second-largest wine consumer by value - surpassing France and the UK and finishing just behind the United States.

ZI LU WINE LOVER "I drink imported wine more often, because I like the taste of different soils of foreign countries. I drink wine almost every day, as a wine lover, I drink wine with daily meals."

So what's fueling this new passion? For one, the flood of wine into China has pushed prices to relatively lower levels. Also, it's not just the taste of wine - but what it represents.

ELLA ZHONG, CO-FOUNDER WSET APPROVED PROGRAMME PROVIDER CHIC CHOC "In China, first of all, as people are becoming wealthier, they're focusing more on their spiritual happiness. They want more from life, and they know how to truly appreciate something, instead of how much it costs. They can see the lifestyle and culture wine represents, so they are becoming more interested."

Ella Zhong knows the market well. She co-founded Chic-Choc in Shanghai - which teaches people everything about wine - from differentiating flavors to how to properly open a wine bottle.

Overseas businesses are also cashing in. Wang Ziwei holds a diploma from "wine and spirit education trust", a British organization that provides courses and certifications for students.

WANG ZIWEI, FOUNDER MULTI-DIMENSIONAL WINE STUDIO AND WINE SPIRIT EDUCATION TRUST "In recent years, the industry has been exploring ways to improve consumers' overall experience of wine consumption, because drinking wine has been labelled as a kind of relaxing and high-end lifestyle."

And that's something China believes is worth toasting. FRANCES KUO, CGTN.