On the arid eastern flank of the Helan Mountains, watered by the Yellow River, Ningxia has risen in barely two decades to become China's premier quality-wine region. The climate is brutal — so cold in winter that every vine must be buried under earth to survive — but the dry, sunny growing season ripens Cabernet Sauvignon into deep, structured reds that have begun winning international awards.
Backed by heavy state investment and a wave of ambitious boutique wineries, Ningxia is the spearhead of Chinese fine wine, its Bordeaux-style reds announcing a new player on the world stage. It is the most dramatic wine-region story of the twenty-first century.