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 Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not