Taigu, Shanxi
Hong Kong-born CEO Judy Chan, who took over Grace Vineyard from her father nearly two decades ago, is a much admired figure. In 2018, when the company listed on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong, Grace’s production capacity was nearly 2 million bottles.
The prescient 1997 investment by CK Chan was both rational (Chan says her father felt China had entered a different era and more people would want to enjoy the fine things in life) and personal (he wanted to give back to the region, where he had attended college, and thought retiring in a winery would be fantastic). Sitting on a well-drained plateau, a six-hour drive from Beijing, sunny, dry Taigu seemed immensely promising, and today it is the region’s most important winery.