Bottled in China: A Wine & Food Podcast

CALLING ALL WINE LOVERS! South African wines are more exciting than ever. In today’s podcast we sit down with Marcus Ford, Asia Market Manager of Wines of South Africa to discuss all there’s to know about SA wines. Working in the wine trade in Shanghai for since 1999, Ford started off as a Sommelier at M on the Bund and then Co-Founded fine wine retailer Pudao Wines. Today, we sit down to discuss...

“I just had to do something,” said Carrie Chan, co-founder of Avant Meat, a company devoted to the development of cultured meat in Hong Kong. Today we speak with Carrie Chan, Co-Founder of Avant Meat, China's first-ever cultured meat technology company. founded in 2018, alongside Dr. Mario Chin, they chose to produce fish, fish fillets, and especially fish maw for their business model. Fish maw is...

Today we sit down with Rudy Guo, Executive Director of Oysterliscious Group in Shanghai. We discuss his journey in the F&B industry and the growing obsession of oysters in Asia.  Based in Shanghai for over eleven years, Rudy Guo shares with us how a simple fast food from Qing Dynasty now fetches hundreds of RMB for his top oyster. Today, we discuss how oysters are traditionally consumed  in China....

Emilio Restoy Cabrera, is CEO of a value-oriented wine and spirits conglomerate: Zamora Company. The Spanish Chemical Engineer, Marketing Expert, and MBA has climbed the corporate ladder of his own family business. He is the third generation running the business. After overseeing domestic sales, marketing, and international accounts, Emilio carries the company on his shoulders. Zamora grew 17% las...

Mate is a traditional South American caffeinated drink that rose in popularity in Germany under the name Yerba-Mate. Today, Daniel de Smeth is bringing his favourite drink to Asia. In this podcast we discuss what exactly is Mate and how it sparked a revolution in the Berlin club and startup scene. We also discuss how his new product: Highlite got started. Find Highlite at selected restaurants acro...

Dan Siebers is an accomplished sommelier and China market expert. He’s been in the industry since the late 1990s and has seen it all. Dan has seen the market shift at a spectacular pace, which has given him a very local and up-close perspective on the market, its past, its present, and the future of wine in China. In this podcast we discuss the market evolution, what beverage trends millenials are...

First launched in Beijing and now in Shanghai, Baozza is becoming a hot trend. It's the perfect example of assimilation of cultures. Baozza is still a very traditional bao, made with great care to preserve its characteristic softness and fluffy texture. The pizza stuffing is also traditional because Alex uses imported Italian tomatoes and mozzarella to achieve the universal, beloved pizza flavor....

In the last few weeks, Australian wines have officially taken over France as China's most imported country by volume. This might come as no surprise for those living in China who've witnessed the effort of Australian wine producers paving the way and a strong marketing campaign lead by Wine Australia. Today we sit down with Wine Australia's Regional General Manager of North Asia, David Lucas to he...

“Who wants to try, honestly, Chinese Cabernet Sauvignon? But what about Chinese Marselan? I think there’s something here, an opportunity.” Today we sit down with Julien Boulard, a China based wine educator, Master of Wine Candidate and Director of Zhulian Wine Consulting. In this episode we discuss everything you need to know about Chinese wines from key regions, why Chinese wines are priced so hi...

Dragons are real and they come from Inner Mongolia. Today we speak with Daniel Brooker, Owner and Maker of Dragon's Blood, a gin produced in Chifeng in Inner Mongolia. With two distinct creations just released on the market, he’s taking his approach as a Chef and blending it into the world as a master distiller. In this episode we discuss the name behind Dragon's Blood, how it all got started and...

A messy problem with a green solution. In today's podcast we sit down with CEO of MotionEco, Shu Tong about how his company sources used cooking oil in China and converts into biodiesel. This is the core issue: China has lots of food waste. It includes massive amounts of used cooking oil. The oil is often collected illegally and traded unethically, sometimes returning to the restaurants through a...

In today's episode we sit down with Lewis Harding, CEO of Coffee Exchange to discuss one of our favorite beverages, coffee. Coffee Exchange is a marketplace that connects, often isolated producers, with eager buyers and roasters in China. Currently based in Shanghai, Lewis spent 10 years in finance and entrepreneurship before finding his true calling in his morning cup. In this podcast we discuss...

Today we sit down with Bob Betz, Master of Wine, Consulting Winemaker and Founder of Betz Family Winery to discuss his journey and Washington State wines. Bob has played A leading role in Washington's wine industry for the last +40 vintages. Mr. Betz is without a doubt part of Washington wine’s history, and his journey has allowed him to work side by side with other greats of American wine history...

The Spirited Future of Port in Asia with Jorge Nunes, Winemaker/APAC Market Manager for Symington Family Estates Watch out everyone, Port is no longer for your grandparent’s generation. Listen in to learn how Port is being embarked and reborn in Asia as the best value for your money. This sweet and rich fortified wine from Portugal is driving unprecedented growth in Asia. Today we sit down with Jo...

Food waste is a heated topic around the world but especially in China. We always hear stories about illegally sold restaurant waste reused for it's cooking oil or thousands of tons of food scraps wasted each day in big cities like Shanghai and Beijing. But what is actually happening in the food recycling ecosystem in China? In today’s podcast we sit down with June Zhang from Collective Responsibil...

Champagne is a growing category around the world, but do we see the same trend in China? In this episode we explore the current situation of Champagne with Edouard Duval, CEO of East Meets West Fine Wines. Part of the Duval-Leroy Champagne House, Edouard shares some of his experiences and thoughts about the Champagne industry and the ever-changing role of the importer/distributor model in China. A...

Decanter Wine Magazine is one of the leading wine publications focused on lifestyle, industry insights, regional profiles and authoritative wine reviews. Founded in 1975, Decanter is the oldest wine publication in circulation in the UK. Today, Decanter grows its footprint around the world with its widely anticipated yearly consumer tasting and masterclasses during the Shanghai Fine Wine Encounter....

Elyse Lambert MS is one of the most respected female sommeliers in the world. Based in Montreal, Quebec, she earned the title of Master Sommelier in 2015. Elyse has her own radio program on Radio Canada, winner of numerous sommelier competitions across the world and is a featured columnist in various wine publications. There’s certainly no slowing down for her. In this podcast we speak with Elyse...

Does Canada only produce Icewine? Recognized for its cold winters and cool climate wines, we discuss where this young winemaking country is headed. Today, we speak with Niagara based boutique wine producer Jakub Lipinski of Big Head Wines about the diversity of Canadian wines. In this episode we talk about the founding and development of Canadian wines in the international scene and his experience...

The idea of pure, unprocess food feels like an unrealistic concept for us in China. Frank Steffen is known as the pioneer of the vegetarian movement in Shanghai. Over eight years ago He founded Pure & Whole, formally Kush, and has since opened up several restaurants focused on plant based dishes. In this episode we discuss how he grew out of one of the lowest points of his life through mindful...

China is Chile's largest market for wine, through 2016-2017, overall imports into China grew 26%. Today, we sit down with the Director of Wines of Chile Asia, Julio Alonso, to discuss what makes Chilean producing regions different through the lens of poetry, food pairing, and art. Previously Julio was a lawyer working with the Ministry of Economy in Chile helping to pass law trades before being se...

Charles Zeng could be the burger mayor of Shanghai. He currently owns five Charlie’s Burger restaurants in the city and consistently serves up some of the most legit burgers, shakes, and now gourmet Jianbing — an early morning local favourite. Originally from NY, Charles got hooked on the vibrancy and energy of Shanghai. Like many, he thought that opening his own restaurant should be easy enough,...

DRiNK Magazine is arguably the industry's insider view into the leading bars, personalities and hotspots in Asia. Today, we discuss with Theo Watt, Founder of Thirsty Work Production & DRiNK Magazine about his journey, DRiNK Magazine Bar Awards, Baijiu and how a trip to Sri Lanka sparked a new idea to help bring the DRiNK community together. To find out more visit their website: http://www.dri...

If you don't already know, China is a foodie nation. With so many various local cuisines and now, international restaurants opening up in tier one cities, there's enough selection to keep us constantly busy. But how can we navigate the thousands of restaurants in Shanghai alone? Today, we speak to Stone Shi, Founder & CEO of Bon APP!, an APP that helps you discover great restaurants with dinin...

Beer lovers rejoice! Stone Brewing is opening up their very own taproom and promising to deliver China the freshest craft beer straight from America. Voted twice by readers of Beer Advocate as the #1 "All Time Top Brewery on Planet Earth", Stone Brewing wants to make sure you get the real deal. In this podcast we sit down with Paul Gelinas, VP & General Manager at Stone Brewing, to d...