Eat Beat

France

China huge at Vinexpo

China soared to prominence this year at the world's leading wine and spirits exhibition, Vinexpo 2015 in Bordeaux, accounting for the largest contingent of foreign trade professionals. Chinese visitor numbers at the June 14-18 fair increased by 14 percent to nearly 4,000 since the last biennial trade show in 2013. China's position as No 1 source of visitors outside France "brought renewed confidence" in the global wine and spirits market, the fair's CEO Guillaume Deglise says. The world's fifth-largest wine consumer was crowned top consumer of red wine last year, having drunk nearly 1.9 billion bottles. Hong Kong film star Carina Lau (pictured) also brought a touch of Chinese glamour to the show by launching her own online wine and champagne brand, which consists of six top-end Bordeaux wines and four other wines from the region, as well as two Moutard champagnes and a sparkling wine.