Bordering the Yang & Sanggan Rivers, at the foothills of the Great Wall of China, Chengzi’s family story is consistent with many others in the region - an agricultural family that began growing grapes in the mid-1980s to meet demand for China’s wine boom, fuelled by state-owned wineries. In 1999 the family began cultivating Cabernet Sauvignon themselves from a 10 hectare vineyard.

During his childhood, Chengzi did what he could in the vineyard and orchards, developing a strong connection to his hometown and unique affection for the terroir of Hebei. Despite that, he wasn’t drawn to winemaking and struggled to find appeal in the industrial wines being produced at the time. However, a chance encounter in Shanghai in 2013 exposed Chengzi to the ‘natural’ wine trend, inspiring him to take over his parents’ estate, immediately stopped the sale of grapes to large state-owned wineries where they would just be blended off into cheap table wine, and transitioned the winery into a completely independent, organically farmed, environmentally conscious vineyard.

Now, the winery is a family affair. Chengzi leads the viticulture and winemaking, with his parents, uncles and aunties supporting where they can. Multi-vintage wines are common, inspired by those in Champagne and traditional beer houses, intended to balance out oxidation and fruit.