A Taiwan white wine won a gold medal at the recently concluded International Wine Challenge in London, the first time for a local tipple to take top honors at the prestigious competition.
Putao Wine, a golden muscat by Taichung City-based Shu Sheng Winery in central Taiwan, underwent an intensive two-week blind tasting by more than 100 judges last month. Only 3 percent of the 14,000 plus entries from 47 countries were awarded gold this year.
“This is a huge vote of confidence,” said Chen Chien-hao, the driving force behind Putao and assistant professor at the Department of Food and Beverage Management of National Kaohsiung University of Hospitality and Tourism.
With support from the ROC Council of Agriculture, Chen developed Putao and transferred the know-how to Shu Sheng in 2005. Prior to the IWC win, Putao picked up a gold at the 2014 Vinalies Internationales in Paris.
“I am just thrilled to bits by the repeated global recognition,” he said, adding that hopefully more official recognition is in the pipeline.
According to Chen, Taiwan’s humid, subtropical climate and typhoon-prone location make it generally unsuitable for viticulture. “But the skills of local farmers and quick-draining soils in central Taiwan make grapes one of the country’s signature agricultural products,” he said.
Chen said he plans to continue working with the Taichung winery and introduce more equipment from France to expand Putao’s production.
“We need to keep this budding enterprise on the move and inspire more farmers to follow,” he said. “Taiwan definitely has what it takes to become a serious player in the global wine market.” (SFC-JSM)
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