What makes Chinese wine worth a trip?

China's wine industry has been quietly building for decades, and most people outside the country have no idea how far it's come. This trip follows three very different chapters of that story. Hebei is where it started, close enough to Beijing that it became the centre of China's first wine boom back in the 1980s. Ningxia is where it's proven itself, a desert plateau east of the Yellow River that's now one of Asia's most credible wine appellations. And Yunnan is where it's headed next, tiny producers working high-altitude valleys in the Himalayan foothills, making wine unlike anything else on earth. Three regions, one thread, and almost nothing in common except the vine.

Is Chinese wine actually good?

Yes, and it's improving fast. Ningxia has already picked up serious international recognition, including Decanter trophies for producers working there. Yunnan is younger and more experimental, small teams farming tiny plots at altitude, figuring out what the land can do. This isn't a novelty tasting. It's a genuine, developing wine industry, and this trip is built around meeting the people driving it forward.

What is Ningxia and why is it a wine region?

Ningxia is a high, semi-arid plateau in northwest China, with the Helan Mountains to the west and the Yellow River to the east. It sounds like an unlikely place to grow wine grapes, and for a long time it was treated that way. Over the last two decades a small group of committed winemakers changed that, and Ningxia is now considered one of the most serious wine regions in Asia.

What is Yunnan wine country like?

Yunnan is the frontier end of the trip. River valleys cut through the Himalayan foothills at elevations that would make most winemakers nervous, and a handful of small producers are working plots there that don't resemble anything else in the wine world. It's remote, it's high, and it's some of the most interesting wine being made anywhere right now.

Do I need to know a lot about wine to enjoy this trip?

No. We travel with a sommelier who leads the wine program throughout, so whether you work in the industry or just enjoy a good glass, you'll get context and access you wouldn't have on your own. The trip is built for wine professionals and enthusiasts alike.

What's the food like on this trip?

It changes completely as you move. Hebei and Beijing give you northern Chinese classics. Ningxia is Hui food, built around lamb and the Muslim quarter traditions of the region. Yunnan shifts again, with Dai, Bai, and Naxi influences depending on where you are, herb-forward, fresh, and completely different from what most people picture when they think of Chinese food.

How much does the tour cost?

The Wine Trail 2027 tour is estimated at AUD $11,000–$12,000 per person. Final pricing will be confirmed when the full itinerary and accommodation guide are released. For a guide to what's typically included and excluded in OTET tour pricing, see our FAQ page. This trip will also include at least two domestic flights.

Where exactly will we go?

We start in Beijing and travel out to Huailai in Hebei for wineries and the Great Wall. From there we fly to Yinchuan in Ningxia, then on to Kunming in Yunnan, with stops in Chuxiong and Lijiang. The full day-by-day itinerary is coming soon.

What kind of accommodation will we stay in?

We stay in a mix of four and five star hotels, often with Chinese chains like Atour and Orange Hotel, which offer a consistently high standard and are well located in most cities. In more out-of-the-way places, we'll use the best local accommodation available — sometimes a local guesthouse, sometimes a boutique property of a four or five star standard. A full accommodation guide will be published alongside the itinerary.

Do I need a visa for China?

Most Western nationalities require a visa to enter China. Visa requirements and exemption agreements do change, so we recommend checking the current requirements for your passport well in advance of travel. You can check with your government and the Chinese embassy of your home country.

The tour is led by Michael Minsky, who has been travelling and eating his way through China since 2005 and speaks Mandarin. He has personal experience of all of the places on this itinerary. Camden Hauge of China Wine Club will be leading the wine program.

Register your interest using the form on this page. We'll be in touch to set up a call, answer your questions, and walk you through the trip in more detail. A 25% non-refundable deposit secures your spot, with the remaining balance due 60 days before departure. Full details are in our Terms of Service.

What's included in the wine program?

Winery visits and tastings across all three regions, plus time with winemakers themselves wherever we can arrange it, in vineyards, over meals, or both. Specific wineries will be confirmed closer to departure.

CHINA’S WINE TRAIL

HEBEI, NINGXIA & YUNNAN

AUGUST 2027

Join the Journey

Duration

Group Size

Aug 18 - Sept 1

14 nights / 15 days

Max 8 guests

Min 4 guests

Starting Point

Ending Point

Beijing

Beijing Province

Lijiang

Yunnan Province

Price

Estimated
AUD $11,000-$12,000
Final price TBC

Photo courtesy of Graeme Kennedy Photography

China's wine industry is still writing its own story, and this trip follows it through three unlikely chapters. We travel from Hebei, just outside Beijing, to the desert plateau of Ningxia, to the high river valleys of Yunnan, tracing the origin, the ascent, and the frontier of a wine scene most of the world hasn't caught up to yet. We're joined by a sommelier to lead the wine program, giving us access and context you won't get wandering in on your own. Beyond the glass, expect the food, culture, and landscapes that make each of these regions worth visiting in their own right.

Full details on the route, the wineries, and the days in between are still in the planning phases, but we’ll be following a similar route to our 2026 Wine Tour. We’ll be extending by one day, allowing for more time in Shangri-la, and introducing some new wineries and stops along the way.

The tour will be led by Michael, who has been travelling and eating his way through China since 2005, including almost a decade living there, and speaks Mandarin.

The wine program for the 2027 China Wine Trail will be run by Camden Hauge of China Wine Club, one of the world’s foremost experts on Chinese wine.

Our Wine Expert Camden Hauge

Photo courtesy of China Wine Club

Camden Hauge has a long history on the China food & wine scene. Shortly after moving to Shanghai in 2012, Camden founded renegade dining club Shanghai Supperclub, which quickly grew into a full-scale experience agency focusing on food & beverage-based events now known as SOCIAL SUPPLY (@socialsupplyshanghai). In parallel, she started opening restaurants & bars, growing an award-winning, eclectic portfolio of seven brands across 10 venues under her hospitality group, Happy Place (@happyplacehospitalitygroup); this included one of the first contemporary wine bars in Shanghai, which is where she fell in love with the wines of China. Camden now splits her time between Shanghai and New York, turning her attention even more fully to exploring and promoting Chinese wines via China Wine Club.

China Wine Club showcases and celebrates the best and brightest of modern Chinese winemaking. Founded in Shanghai by Camden Hauge in 2023 as a series of monthly wine parties, China Wine Club is now bringing the work of independent winemakers from across China’s many regions to the US. They run events in New York and Florida (hopefully more places soon!) with the best of Chinese wine, and work with bottle shops and distributors to put Chinese wine into the hands of a US audience.

GET OFF THE EATEN TRACK WITH US

Want to know more? Here's how it works.

Register your interest using the form and we'll be in touch to set up a quick call, a chance to answer your questions and give you a deeper look at what the trip involves. From there, a 25% non-refundable deposit secures your spot. The remaining balance is due 60 days before departure. Check our full T&Cs here.

The full day-by-day itinerary and accommodation guide are coming soon, and formal bookings will open then. In the meantime, our FAQ covers everything from what's included to our cancellation policy.

We cap the group at eight. Small enough to get into workshops and restaurants that don't accommodate larger groups, and to move at a pace that's actually about the place.

See our other China Tours here.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

General Wine Trail FAQ

China's wine industry has been quietly building for decades, and most people outside the country have no idea how far it's come. This trip follows three very different chapters of that story. Hebei is where it started, close enough to Beijing that it became the centre of China's first wine boom back in the 1980s. Ningxia is where it's proven itself, a desert plateau east of the Yellow River that's now one of Asia's most credible wine appellations. And Yunnan is where it's headed next, tiny producers working high-altitude valleys in the Himalayan foothills, making wine unlike anything else on earth. Three regions, one thread, and almost nothing in common except the vine.
Yes, and it's improving fast. Ningxia has already picked up serious international recognition, including Decanter trophies for producers working there. Yunnan is younger and more experimental, small teams farming tiny plots at altitude, figuring out what the land can do. This isn't a novelty tasting. It's a genuine, developing wine industry, and this trip is built around meeting the people driving it forward.
Ningxia is a high, semi-arid plateau in northwest China, with the Helan Mountains to the west and the Yellow River to the east. It sounds like an unlikely place to grow wine grapes, and for a long time it was treated that way. Over the last two decades a small group of committed winemakers changed that, and Ningxia is now considered one of the most serious wine regions in Asia.
Yunnan is the frontier end of the trip. River valleys cut through the Himalayan foothills at elevations that would make most winemakers nervous, and a handful of small producers are working plots there that don't resemble anything else in the wine world. It's remote, it's high, and it's some of the most interesting wine being made anywhere right now.
No. We travel with a sommelier who leads the wine program throughout, so whether you work in the industry or just enjoy a good glass, you'll get context and access you wouldn't have on your own. The trip is built for wine professionals and enthusiasts alike.
It changes completely as you move. Hebei and Beijing give you northern Chinese classics. Ningxia is Hui food, built around lamb and the Muslim quarter traditions of the region. Yunnan shifts again, with Dai, Bai, and Naxi influences depending on where you are, herb-forward, fresh, and completely different from what most people picture when they think of Chinese food.

Tour FAQ

The Wine Trail 2027 tour is estimated at AUD $11,000–$12,000 per person. Final pricing will be confirmed when the full itinerary and accommodation guide are released. For a guide to what's typically included and excluded in OTET tour pricing, see our FAQ page. This trip will also include at least two domestic flights.
We start in Beijing and travel out to Huailai in Hebei for wineries and the Great Wall. From there we fly to Yinchuan in Ningxia, then on to Kunming in Yunnan, with stops in Chuxiong and Lijiang. The full day-by-day itinerary is coming soon.
We stay in a mix of four and five star hotels, often with Chinese chains like Atour and Orange Hotel, which offer a consistently high standard and are well located in most cities. In more out-of-the-way places, we'll use the best local accommodation available — sometimes a local guesthouse, sometimes a boutique property of a four or five star standard. A full accommodation guide will be published alongside the itinerary.
Most Western nationalities require a visa to enter China. Visa requirements and exemption agreements do change, so we recommend checking the current requirements for your passport well in advance of travel. You can check with your government and the Chinese embassy of your home country.
The tour is led by Michael Minsky, who has been travelling and eating his way through China since 2005 and speaks Mandarin. He has personal experience of all of the places on this itinerary. Camden Hauge of China Wine Club will be leading the wine program.
Register your interest using the form on this page. We'll be in touch to set up a call, answer your questions, and walk you through the trip in more detail. A 25% non-refundable deposit secures your spot, with the remaining balance due 60 days before departure. Full details are in our Terms of Service.
Winery visits and tastings across all three regions, plus time with winemakers themselves wherever we can arrange it, in vineyards, over meals, or both. Specific wineries will be confirmed closer to departure.