A red wine developed by Taiwanese farmers won gold at the 25th Vinalies Internationales in France this week.
The Vino Formosa Rosso is produced by Hung Chi-pei (洪吉倍), who runs Shu-sheng Leisure Domaine in Taichung’s Waipu District (外埔).
The concours, which lasted from March 1 to Tuesday, saw 126 tasters from 35 countries review 3,340 wines.
Photo courtesy of National Kaohsiung University of Hospitality and Chen Chien-hao
Regarded as one of the strictest wine competitions, the contest follows the standards of the International Organization of Vine and Wine.
Seventy percent of entrants are eliminated before the reviewers start grading.
National Kaohsiung University of Hospitality and Tourism assistant professor Chen Chien-hao (陳千浩), who accepted the award in Paris on Wednesday, yesterday said that it is not an easy competition and the result shows that Taiwanese grapes can be used to make world-class wines featuring local flavors.
He and Hung’s family spent 14 years improving the quality of a Japanese grape species named “Black Queen,” Chen said.
With more than 50 years of experience growing grapes, Hung has introduced cutting-edge winemaking equipment from Europe and the US with assistance from the Agriculture and Food Agency and the Taichung Agriculture Bureau.
The cooperation has contributed to increasing wins at international contests, he said.
Taking advantage of Taiwan’s hot and humid weather, they developed a heat aging technique using the Maillard reaction to produce wine, adding brandy and aging it in oak barrels for more than five years, he said.
The reaction generates an aroma through glucose amino acids, while nearly 10 percent of the liquid evaporates during the aging process, leaving about 100 liters of wine per barrel, he said.
Natural evaporation improves the quality of wine, allowing it to keep the fresh and sour flavors and giving a mellower taste, Chen said.
He and Hung plan to set up a new winery to produce products using local crops, such as rice, sweet potato and fruits, Chen said, adding that they hope to promote Taiwanese wine on the global stage.
Vino Formosa Rosso was among 430 wines that won a gold medal.
Additional reporting by staff writer
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Hualien Branch of the High Court today sentenced the main suspect in the 2021 fatal derailment of the Taroko Express to 12 years and six months in jail in the second trial of the suspect for his role in Taiwan’s deadliest train crash. Lee Yi-hsiang (李義祥), the driver of a crane truck that fell onto the tracks and which the the Taiwan Railways Administration's (TRA) train crashed into in an accident that killed 49 people and injured 200, was sentenced to seven years and 10 months in the first trial by the Hualien District Court in 2022. Hoa Van Hao, a
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
RSS