Development after the Establishment of the P.R.

China’s wine industry has gone through three stages in its development after the establishment of the People’s Republic of China – the restoration at the beginning, the large-scale construction followed, and the tortuous advancement after the opening-up, which resulted in the spectacular achievement today.

Overall expansion was the major target of the initial foundation, which was directed by the State Ministry of Light Industry and consisted of reconstruction and enlargement of wine industry. Beijing Eastern Suburb Winery, one of the 156 Key Projects and designed solely by Chinese engineers, was created during the first five-year plan, which was followed by the expansion of Yantai Changyu Winery, Beijing Winery, Tsingtao Winery, Tonghua Winery, Danfeng Winery, Qingxu Fruit Juice Distillery, and Shacheng Winery.

During the second five-year plan, special attention was paid to the exploitation of the traditional Yellow River Area, and wine-making grape species were introduced from Bulgaria, Hungary, and former USSR. At the same time, the selection and breeding of native Chinese varieties were conducted and bases for seedlings set up. A dozen of wineries came into being in this period, such as Minquan, Lankao and Zhengzhou wineries in Henan, Xiaoxiao Winery in Anhui, and Lianyungang and Fengxian wineries in Jiangsu

After the 70’s, the number of wineries above the county level numbered more than 100, and the wine output reached 64,000 tons in 1978 from the mere 200 tons in 1949. Grape garden and production bases were fostered in Xinjiang, Gansu’s dry areas, plains around Bohai Sea, the former Yellow River bed, the Loess Plateau dry land, Huai River region, and Changbai Mountains.

After the third plenary meeting of the CPC’s Eleventh Conference, great changes have taken place in China’s wine industry. The national conference of liquor-making in 1987 set forth the task of four changes, among which the “change from grain liquor to fruit liquor” brought about a new chance to wine development. The wine output in 1981, 1985, and 1988 were 100,000, 230,300 and 300,850 tons respectively.

The success of Mr. Guo Qi-chang’s new technique in wine making in the years from 1978 to 1983 ended the history of blending in China’s wine industry, and set China onto the new track of meeting the international standards. The creation of the Sino-French joint venture, the Dynasty Winery Corporation, in 1980, and the birth and expansion of the Great Wall Winery, together with the old Changyu Winery, formed the triumvirate of China’s wine industry, which occupies more than half of the national market within the country, and a significant share in the international arena.