Pecan + Wine

choi

(1) Janet McConnaughey, Drought, demand from China drive up pecan prices. Associated Press, Nov  http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/sto ... ET&SECTION=HOME

Quote:

"Pecans are the only major tree nut native to the U.S., which produces about 80 percent of the world's crop. * * * Georgia is usually the biggest pecan producer. * * * Drought dramatically reduced the pecan crop in many of those states this year.

"A bigger reason for high pecan prices is strong demand from Asia. China typically buys a fifth of the U.S. crop. The nuts are especially prized during the country's two-week New Year celebration in January or February.

My comment:
(a) pecan  胡桃
(b) I do not know why Chinese like it. To me, it not only taste bland, but churns my stomach (like some other raw nuts, for reason(s) beyond me).

(2) China Increasingly Intoxicated with Burgundy. China Real Time, Nov 7, 2011
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealti ... od=google_news_blog
("For years, Chinese fine wine buyers have tended to favor high-end juice from France’s Bordeaux region. Lately, however, wines from another part of France — Burgundy — have started to seep into the Chinese market")

Note:
(a) The report points to

Janet Chow, Asia’s Hot Label: Burgundy. Scene Asia, Nov 7, 2011.
http://blogs.wsj.com/scene/2011/11/07/asias-hot-label-burgundy/
(b) Bordeaux
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bordeaux

* History of Bordeaux wine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Bordeaux_wine
(The name Bordeaux derives from the French au bord de l'eau which means "along the waters" and makes reference to the Gironde estuary and its tributaries, the Garonne and the Dordogne rivers which play a pivotal role in the history and success of this region)
(c) Burgundy (French region)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burgundy_(French_region)
(The name comes from the Burgundians, an ancient Germanic people who settled in the area in early Middle-age)

* Burgundians
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burgundians
(an East Germanic tribe which may have emigrated from mainland Scandinavia)


(3) Kelvin Chan, Foreign Vineyards Target China But Face Lack of Wine Culture. Associated Press, Nov 7, 2011.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/r ... ticle2227713/print/

Quote:

"The southern Chinese city [Hong Kong] abolished wine import duties in 2008 in a bid to become a regional wine centre and imports surged by nearly 60 per cent in the first nine months of 2011 to $940-million (U.S.).

"China's wine market is split between the high end, where the wealthy spend thousands of dollars on bottles as an investment or to drink at restaurants on special occasions and the low end, dominated by local and foreign producers selling wine for just a few dollars a bottle or in large containers. The middle market doesn't really exist