A promotional activity was held at the Russian Embassy in Beijing on Dec. 9 to introduce Russia's Abrau-Durso wine to the Chinese market.

The event was attended by Andrey Denisov, Russian ambassador to China; Alexey Dakhnovskiy, Russian trade representative to China; Cao Derong, president of China Chamber of Commerce of Import and Export of Foodstuffs, Native Produce and Animal By-Products (CFNA); as well as enterprise representatives from both China and Russia.

Ambassador Denisov highlighted the friendship between China and Russia, and shared his understanding of China's wine history in fluent Chinese.

Alexey Dakhnovskiy emphasized the strong economic complementarity between the two countries and the fruitful bilateral trade cooperation. He said that compared with chocolate, ice cream and vodka, Russian wine is a relatively new product for Chinese consumers, but that "Russian wine products have a promising market potential in China based on Russia's assessment."

Cao Derong explained the expanding trade engagement between China and Russia. "Last year, China imported $4.1 billion of agricultural products from Russia, up 14% year on year," he said. "This figure increased by 4% year on year to $3.5 billion from January to October this year."

Cao went on to talk about the rising popularity of Russian wine in China. "China imported $23 million of wine products from Russia last year and $29 million this year (Jan.-Oct.)," he noted. "As China upgrades its consumption and continues to open up to a higher standard, I believe that Russian wine enterprises, including Abrau-Durso, will shine in the Chinese market."

After the speeches, a video was played to introduce the manufacturing techniques and history of Abrau-Durso wine, which was first developed in 1870 under the order of Russian Tsar Alexander II.

According to the representatives of Abrau-Durso's branch in Shanghai, its production areas in Russia boast favorable soil and climate conditions, with around 320 sunny days each year. They also introduced their diverse range of products, including red wine, fruit wine, champagne, and non-alcoholic beverages suitable for children.

Currently, Abrau-Durso wine is known by 92% of Russian people and exported to 22 foreign countries. The Abrau-Durso Winery has become a wine production center integrating catering, accommodation and tourism.