敖云香格里拉 Ao Yun Shangri-La 2015

"... velvety & fruity, elegant, complex ... "

Ao Yun is an ambitious project by LVMH to create a unique, world-class wine estate in an ideal but new environment.  The famed Australian winemaker, Dr. Tony Jordan, was commissioned to find such a place.  He found his way to the foothills of the Himalayas in Yunnan, near the legendary and remote villages of Shangri-La.  There he found not only conditions that reminded him of Bordeaux but also the remnants of a wholly forgotten series of vineyards planted with Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc which had been introduced by French missionaries in the 1800s.  The weather station he implemented locally in 2010 has provided 12 years of weather data to show the Shangri-La climate is a hybrid one between Bordeaux and Napa in term of temperature/sun/rain depending on season.

Located at an altitude between 6890 and 8530 feet (2100 to 2600 meters, 500 meters of variation), Ao Yun's vineyards are spread out on both banks of the Mekong River.  The mountainous region is spectacular, with unique vineyards from the valley floor to mountain high.  Ao Yun leases 314 blocks, with 727 tiny sub-parcels identified, totaling 28 ha from 120 local families in 4 villages of the Upper Mekong Valley. There are different soil types and climates in each village due to different altitudes, sun exposure, wind exposure, landslide and river deposits.  With such variety of soil and finely identified parcels, Ao Yun takes the Burgundy Approach to cultivate each parcel, as shown here in a map from Adong, one of the four villages producing grapes for Ao Yun:

After harvesting and micro-vinification, the winemaker conducts blind tastings from each parcel/terroir, before using the Bordeaux art of blending to create the Ao Yun Grand Cru.  In the true Bordeaux fashion, the blending is different from year to year.

In certain years, the wine from each individual village is bottled under its own name: Shuori （说日）, Adong（阿东）, Sinong（斯农）, Xidang（西当）.

Ao Yun（敖云）means “above the clouds.”  From the video presented by the estate, one can almost tell there is something weightless and ethereal about the place and the wine it produces.

"The 2015 Ao Yun is a blend of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon and 21% Cabernet Franc. It has a deep ruby appearance—even deeper than the 2016—and reveals an immediately complex, perfumed nose of lifted cassis, bramble and black plum fruit with subtle pyrazine notes (green bell pepper, touch of blackcurrant leaf) combining with well-integrated new oak notes of clove, smoke and toast. The 2015 Ao Yun shows even greater concentration than the impressive 2016 vintage, with ripe, fine-grained tannins, harmonious alcohol and some buoyant acidity. This has marked length with a stylish, polished finish. It will be fascinating to see how the 2015 and 2016 vintages evolve alongside each other in the years to come. The 2015 currently looks as though it might have the edge on the 2016, but there is much to appreciate in both wines. The 2015 is certainly more in line stylistically with the 2017 vintage, which has similarly glossy and robust fruit and will be similarly age-worthy." - Edward Ragg, The Wine Advocate (12/10/2020), Ratings: 94, Drink: 2020-2030

"Sleek and rich, exceptionally good quality, touches of mint leaf and green pepper as it opens, giving a savoury Cabernet character along with sandalwood, aniseed and fennel spices. There is plenty of grilled oak smoke but it is well balanced by raspberry and black cherry fruits that become clearer with 24 hours opening as the tannins soften. At this point winemaker Maxence Dulou and the team at Ao Yun were getting to better understand the terroir (helped by an extensive soil study programme, furher subdividing the plots into 314 blocks, and measuring the water retaining capacity of each plot). Harvest September 17 (Xidang Village) to October 19 (Adong Village). 31hl/h yield, 60% new oak." - Jane Anson (2/26/2022) Ratings: 94, Drink: 2022-2034

The team in charge of Ao Yun is led by French winemaker, Maxence Dulou.  They practice a cousu main (tailor-made) vineyard approach to express the terroir.  A few noticeable points:

1. Shoot accuracy for customized fruit thinning: instead of aiming for a yield target per hectare (common practice), MH Shangri-La has optimized quality down to a single shoot.  Based on 35 terroirs and 5 vine types, the team only keeps 100 to 200g of grapes per shoot.
2. An accurate weather forecasting system: years of experimentation and newly adopted AI system to facilitate better decision making based on accurate weather forecast
3. Pure soils and fruit: The vineyards adopted European organic farming standards since 2013.  To harvest the purest expression of terroir, the team included an unheard-of technique of rinsing the grapes twice while still hanging on the vine prior to harvest. This method ensures that any residue, even organic, is removed from grape skins.