Lingering Clouds

停云

It felt inevitable a country that holds tea as a cornerstone of its culture, history and daily life would use tea in a winery, but Johnny Liu is walking his own path to marry his two favourite beverages.

As another one of China’s négociant-winemakers, Lingering Clouds buys fruit from local vineyards and ferments grapes with high-quality tea leaves from around China: Fuzhou nine-scented jasmine, Mingqian Shifeng Longjing, and Guangdong Oolong.

Johnny approaches the tea steeping like oak - adding flavours and tannins to base wines. It’s been a 10-year trial and error, but he’s finally cracked the code of making uniquely Chinese beverages.

Winemaker: Jianjun ‘Johnny’ Liu
Established: 2016
Location: Qingtongxia, Ningxia
Farming Method: Sustainable
Vineyard Size: Négociant, 17,000 bottles per annum
Vineyard: 40% Chardonnay, 20% Syrah, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Riesling, 10% Pinot Noir

Johnny in his winery

Born and raised in Henan, Johnny was a career technical engineer for internet services before discovering the world of wine in 2012.

With no winemaking experience, Johnny found his place under the wing of Silver Heights’ Emma Gao and husband Thierry Courtade. Over three years he learnt how to manage the vineyard and see the winemaking process from harvest to fermentation to bottling.

‘Lingering Clouds’ comes from the Chinese poet Tao Yuanming (YYYY). The poet revered nature and sought a return to simplicity - something Johnny resonates with.

Now, Johnny lives and works as a négociant in Ningxia, guiding local growers towards sustainable farming methods as he also makes plans to plant his own vineyard.

With no formal winemaking, Johnny was able to think outside the box to create his ‘Chá-donnay’ wines.

At the core of Lingering Clouds is an emphasis on fruit quality above winemaking, where Johnny wants to keep human intervention at a minimum and only serve as a guide in the winemaking process. He believes that wines carrying a true sense of place - from the environment, climate, and surrounding culture - are powerful forces that need to be shared with the world.

In his future vineyard, Johnny seeks to capture terroir through traditional Chinese farming practices. The country has one of the oldest continuous agricultural traditions in the world, and Johnny seeks to use farming philosophies of his ancestors over modern organic or biodynamic principals.

Vineyards

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Wines

‘Jasmine Blossom’ Sparkling Chárdonnay
100% Chardonnay from Qingtongxia, Ningxia. Picked and fermented in stainless steel for 30 days. Fuzhou nine-scented jasmine tea leaves are directly added to the fermenting wine for a slow extraction over 20 days. The fermenting wine is filtered and bottled to complete fermentation in-bottle.

‘West Lake Girl’ Sparkling Chárdonnay
100% Chardonnay from Qingtongxia, Ningxia. Picked and fermented in stainless steel for 30 days. Mingqian Shifeng Longjing tea leaves are directly added to the fermenting wine for a slow extraction over 20 days. The fermenting wine is filtered and bottled to complete fermentation in-bottle.

‘Osmanthus & Orchid’ Sparkling Chárdonnay
100% Chardonnay from Qingtongxia, Ningxia. Picked and fermented in stainless steel for 30 days. Fujian and Guangdong oolong tea leaves are directly added to the fermenting wine for a slow extraction over 20 days. The fermenting wine is filtered and bottled to complete fermentation in-bottle.