Vanguard vintner

It makes 50,000 bottles of high-end wines a year, including an acclaimed chardonnay displaying what fans say is an elegance befitting the ethereal attractions of the area. Main plots of petit manseng, cabernet franc and marselan help complete its offering of red, white, rose and sweet white wines. The cellar boasts high-tech geothermal pumps for optimal temperature and humidity levels, complemented with the use of traditional fine-grained French oak barrels. Guest rooms and dining areas complete luxury wine tour experiences, catering to increasingly savvy consumers.

The operation comprises a core team of five people, as well as more than 30 rural residents in the vineyard's fields helping with seasonal grape growing and harvesting. The farmers can earn a good income and share their agricultural experience in local apple cultivation, helping to increase the community's stake in local winemaking.

Chief winemaker Liu Layu spearheads the vineyard's sustainable farming approach－irrigation channels and chemical fertilizers are avoided, with 120 tons of sheep manure and 15 tons of volcanic rock powder per hectare applied to restore soil conditions when construction first rolled out. Thousands of tons of the materials have since been spread on the slopes over the years.

In the fields, unwanted shoots are crushed and mulched to help improve moisture, increase organic matter and boost beneficial microbes in the soil. Leaves are also thinned after flowering to increase the aroma, flavors and color of the grapes.

"Wines are extremely sensitive to their environment and display the characteristics of their surroundings acutely," Liu says. "We wanted to make sure our wines had the clearest expression of our natural beauty."

Song says 2016 was a milestone, when the vineyard produced its first batch of good wine that went on to win international accolades.

"It was challenging at first, with our size and all, but we stuck to our path of looking long term and not compromising on quality. So we were lucky in a sense that we reaped the returns and recognition early on," she says.

Sticking to sustainable development and ecological priorities will continue to be essential for success, since the rewards are ultimately for future generations to enjoy, Song says.

"It's never just a business for us, perhaps especially so for my generation of entrepreneurs in this industry and beyond," she says. "As members of a group who have experienced the fruits and achievements of China's impressive development, such as its reform and opening-up, we should also have a responsibility to society, to help with sustaining all-around, stable progress.

"I can help do that through this industry, to show the world that China is able to make top wines that are also sustainable and responsible."

In terms of social responsibility, Song and her husband are also deeply involved in a charity organization in Beijing which helps children afflicted with major illnesses, and supports education and public welfare projects for poor families. In 2016, she was elected as a deputy to the Penglai people's congress.

Gao Jingtao, head of the Yantai vine and wine bureau, says vineyards reflect the growing potential of Chinese wines on the global stage, riding on Yantai's place as the origin of major winemaking enterprises.

"Chinese wines are about our culture and history as much as our winemakers' increasing economic and technical expertise," he says.