Beychevelle aims to capitalise on year of the dragon

With Bordeaux châteaux using numbers, symbols and artists on their bottles and labels to capitalise on their popularity with Chinese drinkers, the drinks business was intrigued to consider what properties could prove popular next year, the year of the dragon.

Talking of the recent developments surrounding Beychevelle, Nicolas Cheronet, founder of the Bordeaux Wine Exchange, told db that it could be “very interesting to see what happens with that estate in China next year.”

In December’s issue of db Nick Pegna, managing director of Berry Bros & Rudd in Hong Kong, commented on the fact that both Calon-Ségur and Beychevelle are popular in China and have the potential to attract a larger following; Calon-Ségur as its’ name translates as “flying dragon” and Beychevelle because of the dragon boat on its label.

After seeing the huge rise in demand following Lafite’s addition of a number eight on bottles of its 2008 vintage and Mouton’s use of Chinese artist Xu Lei to design its label for the same vintage; surely Beychevelle’s new owners, Castel and Suntory, have considered the possibilities of raising their brand’s profile with its distinctive image?

Rupert Millar, 24.02.2011