• Home
  • BUY WINE
  • Wines A-Z
    • Wines A-Z
    • Wine Names & Pronunciation Guide
    • Wine Brands
    • Spanish Wine Terms
    • Popular Red Wines
      • Cabernet Sauvignon
      • Merlot
        • More on Merlot
      • Pinot Noir/Red Burgundy
        • More on Pinot Noir
      • Syrah/Shiraz
      • Malbec
      • Zinfandel
      • Tempranillo
    • Popular White Wines
      • How White Wine Is Made
    • Champagne and Sparkling Wines
    • Popular Sweet Wines
    • White Zinfandel
    • Napa Valley Wine
  • Videos
    • Wine Varietals & Styles
    • Wine & Food Pairings
    • Videos: Wine Regions
    • Rare and Fine Wines
    • Winemaker Interviews
    • Tips & Other Topics
  • Blog
  • Forums
  • Encyclopedia
  • FAQ
    • Wine Tasting
    • Wine Storage
    • Sulfite Free Wine
    • Sweet Wine
    • Leftover Wine
  • Home
  • BUY WINE
  • Wines A-Z
    • Wines A-Z
    • Wine Names & Pronunciation Guide
    • Wine Brands
    • Spanish Wine Terms
    • Popular Red Wines
      • Cabernet Sauvignon
      • Merlot
        • More on Merlot
      • Pinot Noir/Red Burgundy
        • More on Pinot Noir
      • Syrah/Shiraz
      • Malbec
      • Zinfandel
      • Tempranillo
    • Popular White Wines
      • How White Wine Is Made
    • Champagne and Sparkling Wines
    • Popular Sweet Wines
    • White Zinfandel
    • Napa Valley Wine
  • Videos
    • Wine Varietals & Styles
    • Wine & Food Pairings
    • Videos: Wine Regions
    • Rare and Fine Wines
    • Winemaker Interviews
    • Tips & Other Topics
  • Blog
  • Forums
  • Encyclopedia
  • FAQ
    • Wine Tasting
    • Wine Storage
    • Sulfite Free Wine
    • Sweet Wine
    • Leftover Wine

Chinese Wine Terms

June 22, 2016 


NEW research will help wine producers and distributors to describe their product more effectively using terms more easily understood by Chinese wine consumers.

The Chinese Lexicon Project  – a two year long research initiative by the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute at the University of South Australia funded by the Australian Grape and Wine Authority (AGWA) – has revealed what terms Chinese consumers use when describing a wine and what Asian fruit and vegetable flavours are equivalent to the Western ones used to describe wine.

“Describing a wine as tasting of blueberry is hard to understand if you have never seen or tasted a blueberry”

The project, led by Dr Armando Corsi, Dr Justin Cohen and Prof Larry Lockshin, involved more than 250 Chinese wine consumers from Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu.

The participants described the taste of a selection of Australian white, red, sparkling and dessert wines.

Participants selected a series of generic wine descriptors as well as choosing from a list of specific fruit and vegetable flavours. These flavours were either Western fruit and vegetables or proposed Chinese equivalents.

The research found that generic wine descriptors, such as “mellow”, “lingering” or “fruity” were three times more likely to be used than specific wine descriptors by Chinese wine consumers.

Dr Corsi says that wine has been predominantly described in China using Western terminology but such descriptors lack meaning if the consumer has little or no experience of tasting that particular fruit, vegetable or spice.

“Describing a wine as tasting of blueberry is hard to understand if you have never seen or tasted a blueberry,” Dr Corsi says.

“What this research has provided is evidence of what specific Chinese fruit and vegetable flavours are equivalent to the Western descriptors currently used on wines in China.

“We can now say that the equivalent to blackberry preserve is dried Chinese hawthorns.”

The project also investigated the likeability, willingness to pay and perceived price points of different wine styles.

The research showed that what is perceived to be more expensive is not necessarily what is liked the most.

“There is also the potential for similar research to be undertaken in other countries to determine what cultural descriptors they would use to describe the taste of different wines.”

According to a recent Wine Australia Export Report the value of Australian wine exports to China has grown 66 per cent to $370 million in 2015.

In response to these findings, Wine Australia has produced an Australian Wine Flavours Card to link an Australian wine descriptor with an equivalent taste that is more related to the Chinese palate.




Share On


Previous Article
Austin Wine and Food 2016
Next Article
Down Under Wine Is Up... Australia's Largest Wine Industry Event Begins Sunday






  • Search

  • Wine Videos

    • Popular Wine Varietals & Styles
    • Wine & Food Pairing
    • Exploring Wine Regions
    • Rare and Fine Wines
    • Wine Tasting with Pros
    • Winemaker Interviews
    • Tips & Other Topics
  • Recent Posts

    • National Wine Day
    • Special Invitation To Wineries
    • A Glass Of Wine During A Pandemic
    • The 2017 Wine Lover’s Guide to a Kitchen Remodel
    • Austin Hope – The guy who will lasso the moon
    • Tips for Creating the Perfect Wine Tasting Party


  • Recent Posts

    • National Wine Day May 26, 2023
    • Special Invitation To Wineries March 3, 2021
    • A Glass Of Wine During A Pandemic December 3, 2020

© Copyright 1994-2021 Wines.com. All Right Reserved.
Back to top
  • Wine Brands
  • Sitemap
  • Privacy
  • Contact