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Luxury wine from extreme terroirs

From the rocky foothills of the Himalayas a luxury Chinese red wine made by Moët Hennessy is now available in South Africa.

After years of searching across China to find the ideal terroir to produce a red wine worthy of comparison with the world’s greatest wines, the perfect site was found in the north of the Yunnan province.

Located in the villages of Adong, Xidang, Sinong and Shuori at the foot of the sacred Meili mountain, Ao Yun vineyards range in altitude from 2 200 to 2 600 meters, enabling the cabernet sauvignon grape to express the full refinement of this unique terroir. Local farmers have worked these lands for centuries, adapting their farming techniques to the steep mountainsides. To respect time-honoured local tradition, the grape harvest and winemaking are done entirely by hand. The Ao Yun terroir enjoys exceptional climatic conditions, with temperatures similar to those of Bordeaux.

Ao Yun means “flying above the clouds”, a reference to the clouds that cap the summits of the surrounding mountain chains.

Luxury wine from extreme terroirs 1

Ao Yun, along with Bodega Numanthia and Cheval des Andes from the Moët Hennessy luxury wine portfolio are now available in South Africa from fine wine merchants, Wine Cellar.

‘These incredible properties signify extreme wine growing, from Toro’s 100-year-old desert vines to wines from the foothills of the Andes and Himalayas. Cheval des Andes is considered Argentina’s ‘Grand Cru’ while Ao Yun, produced near Shangri-La, is China’s most ambitious and luxurious wine ever,’ said Roland Peens and James Pietersen of Wine Cellar.

Read about Hennessy’s eighth generation Master Blender.

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