Wine Buzz: Lodi winery makes inroads into Chinese market

Dave Phillips, co-owner of Lodi's Michael-David Winery, is taking on more of the world.

Michael-David Winery just entered the Chinese market, and Phillips will travel to China next month to promote the wines. Plans also call for Michael-David wines to be distributed in Vietnam and India.

Bottles of Michael-David wines are already being uncorked around the world, reaching thirsty masses in such far-flung places as Sweden and South Korea. China is viewed as an especially tantalizing spot for wine marketers, given the country's emerging middle class and increasing taste for wine.

Back home in Lodi, Michael-David Winery produces 350,000 cases annually and is known for its fruit-driven wines, including its 7 Deadly Zins zinfandel and 6th Sense Syrah.

Will China embrace this taste of Lodi? "Wine Buzz" caught up with Phillips as he was about to board a plane from Denver to Sacramento.

How tough is it to crack the Chinese market?

Right now, there are a lot of barriers – cultural, tariffs, stuff like that. (China has) never been a huge wine-drinking nation. But I think we have a huge opportunity with 25-to-35-year-olds, that emerging middle class in China that will be into fine wine. We want to try and crack into that.

With over 1 billion people in China, the market potential is unreal.

The Chinese market's either been about really low-priced wines or the high end – over $100. There's not much in the middle, so we're trying to develop a $20 to $50 price point.

Is there such a thing yet as a "Chinese palate"? Do Chinese wine drinkers favor certain styles?

We know they traditionally liked sweet wines or like to mix with sweet beverages. As in the U.S., you start sweet – like with a white zinfandel – and then work your way up to dry wines. I think that'll be the case in China.

Is that the overall wine style you're going for at Michael-David?

What Lodi gives us is lots of fruit. Our house style is really extracted, flavorful wines with lots of dark color on the reds. They drink well young, and we're making them fun.

The wines from Lodi, in particular, are so fruit-forward and appeal to a wide range of people. They're drinking well right now. You don't need to lay them down and age them like a Bordeaux.

What about Vietnam? How would you characterize that country's wine scene?

I'm really excited about Vietnam. It has more of a wine culture because of the French influence. It's a more developed wine-drinking nation than China.

Can you give us a brief history of Michael-David? How did this all begin?

My brother Mike and I are fifth generation in Lodi. Our family's always grown grapes, through multiple generations. In 1984, we started the winery. It was on a small scale – we sold the wines behind a fruit stand on Highway 12. We eventually started branching outside California, and now we're in all 50 states and 14 foreign countries.

How do you see the future of Michael-David? How much room do you have to grow in the global marketplace?

We know we have enough good grapes in Lodi. It's such a huge appellation. We can grow to half a million cases and still keep improving quality. We've invested heavily in a state-of-the-art winery, and we have a good winemaking team, too. We work closely with growers in Lodi to produce the best possible grapes.

The next step is to help put Lodi wine on the world's map.

MICHAEL-DAVID WINERY

Where: 4580 W. Highway 12, Lodi

Tasting-room hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. daily

Cost: Free; $10 for reserve wines, which are poured only on weekends

Tours: Free, reservation only

Information: (209) 368-7384; www.lodivineyards.com