Italy's wine producers lagging in fight for sales in China

Verona, Italy

ON paper it seems as obvious a pairing as a glass of spicy Gewurztraminer with crispy duck and pancakes.

Yet Italy, the world's biggest wine producer, is lagging in the fight for sales in China, tipped to become the world's second-biggest importer of wine by 2020.

Sales of Chianti, Pinot Grigio and other samples from Italy's 300-plus wine denominations accounted for barely 5 per cent of the US$2.4 billion worth of wine that the world's most populous nation imported in 2016.

Of that total, 44 per cent by value was sourced from France. Australia, Chile and Spain are also ahead of Italy in seducing the palates of China's burgeoning middle class.

"It's a pity. Italian producers have been slow to get into the market," says Andrew Tan, a Brunello di Montalcino enthusiast in charge of procurement for 1919, …