Christie’s unveils Chinese names for Bordeaux

Christie’s auction house has unveiled an official translation of the 61 châteaux in the 1855 classification, after a year of discussions with the estates.

All but four of the châteaux have approved the Chinese translation of their names.

“We have confirmation from all but four châteaux that these Chinese translations are the agreed names for the whole Chinese speaking world,” said Simon Tam (left), Christie’s head of wine in China.

“We are trying to make wine as accessible as possible for our clients. Language is the first barrier and we want to break down those barriers,” he added.

The auction house worked with châteaux to agree on a Chinese translation for the 61 estates.

Though a small number of châteaux, including Cos d’Estournel, have decided not to take a Chinese name.

The translations have been published on a poster (right), which will be unveiled to the trade during the 2012 en primeur week in April.

The posters will also be given to Christie’s clients and journalists.

Tam is hoping that other auction houses and the wider wine trade will adopt the official translation.

Christie’s is working on similar translations for properties in Sauternes, the right bank of Bordeaux and Burgundy, which it hopes to release later this year.

Asian demand for Bordeaux helped France to achieve a record year for wine exports in 2011, up 10.5% to €10 billion, with Asian exports accounting for €2.5 billion.