Steeped in Wine Culture, Azerbaijan Now Looks to Break Into Beijing's Market

Perhaps one of the more exotic attendees of last weekend's Hot & Spicy Festival was the small Azerbaijani contingent. As well as selling traditional food like flatbread and fish simmered in a rich sauce, the booth was accompanied by the Embassy of Azerbaijan, the Office of the Trade Representative, who are currently doing the rounds to enlighten Beijingers about the qualities of their local wines and culture.

Bordered by the Caspian Sea to the east and the Caucasus Mountains to the west, Azerbaijan is a country rich in history, culture, and most importantly for wine, abundant natural resources and an optimal climate for cultivating grapes. The country's long relationship with winemaking is undisputed, with archaeologists having found ceramic wine vessels in the region that date back to the second millennium BC.

That tradition continues, most recently with a revival of the wine industry in the second half of 19th century, including exports, and gradually becoming a mainstay industry of the country. The early 1980s is seen as the industry's modern boom time, during which it became both independent and sustainable. According to the profits, believe it or not, it was at this point that the wine industry surpassed the oil industry as the country's most prosperous trade.

The business continues to grow to this day, with the most notable winery being Vinagro, founded in 2006 (formerly known as the Goygol Winery), and cultivation spanning grape varieties such as Chardonnay, Merlot, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as native traditional grape varieties such as Madrasa, Saperavi, Rkatsiteli, Bayanshirey, and Gamashara, among many others.

Azerbaijan has for centuries also be intricately linked to China as a major hub of the Silk Road, joining Europe and Asia and providing the world with silk. It seems now that the Land of Fire looks to rekindle that bond, but this time through the bonhomie built over a glass of world-class wine instead.

A selection of Azerbaijani wines can be obtained in BHG stores around Beijing.

READ: Celebrate "China's Grape" Around Beijing With the Second World Marselan Day

Images courtesy of the Azerbaijani Embassy