Looking Ahead to 2013

Well, the holidays are over and for most of us that means that the first commute to work is taking place right now and for most, that means the monotony of work is about to fall upon us once again. But, it also means that there is a whole year ahead of events, wine dinners, tastings and more taking place in Hong Kong and around the world so, for our first post of 2013, we thought we’d give you a rough idea of what’s in store in the coming twelve months here in Hong Kong.

January is a painfully slow month always with people considering the extravagance that has taken place throughout December with Christmas parties, holidays, Christmas itself and New Year. Most of us indulged in a big way over the last few weeks and for those who believe in resolutions, January is usually the month where people think about taking a rest from booze, getting fit and, generally try to remedy the largesse that their bodies have been bombarded with over the last month. Thus, nothing much really happens here in January but I am sure there will be tastings a plenty and the usual array of fine wine dinners in the city. There will, of course, be Acker, Merrall and Condit’s January auction taking place on the 25^th and 26^th in the Grand Hyatt.

February marks the end of the current lunar year and the beginning of another as Chinese New Year festivities take hold in the month. Usually a time for family gatherings and holidays, it’s back to the bars and restaurants for most with copious amounts of wine consumed over dinners and gatherings thus making this one of the most lucrative times for the city’s wine retailers and importers.

March is always a great time to be in Hong Kong and is, traditionally, one of the busiest months of the year for the booze trade. The highlight of the month is always the Rugby Sevens tournament held here annually which see’s a vast quantity of beer and Pimms consumed, but let’s not forget the Louis Roederer Champagne tent and the fact the tournament is supported strongly by Jebsen Fine Wine and their annual showing of Sacred Hill wines. The tournament takes place this year from the 22^nd to the 24^th March. The month also sees the return of the China Wine Awards “Best Value Wine” which takes place in the Mira Hotel on the 4^th March, time once again for the numerous judges to taste their way through hundreds of wines and a fair amount of spirits to see which wines suit the China market best.

April is a month where, beset by holiday, the wine trade will slow down for a while. Easter Monday is on the 1^st April this year so, amongst the cute bunnies and excessive intake of chocolate, expect there to be wines consumed at home, whilst many of us flee the city for the golden beaches of Thailand, The Philippines, Bali and places further afield.

May kicks off with the bi-annual return of HOFEX, hosted at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre from the 7^th to 10^th May 2013. Although not specifically about wine, the show is the regions premier food and hospitality tradeshow and amongst the ovens, dishwashers, ice creams, foodstuffs and liqueurs, expect to find a decent amount of wine, most of which will be currently available on the Hong Kong market. It is a tradeshow so not open to the public, but be you can be reassured that (hopefully) the trade will be down there seeking out great wines to put on their restaurant wine lists.

June is a quieter month as Vinexpo Asia Pacific does not take place here but it goes back to its traditional home of Bordeaux. Hosted from the 16^th to 20^th June, expect, as we’ve seen over the last few years, a major influx of clients from both Hong Kong and mainland China as they seek to find out more about the wines they hold in such high regard and take the opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the largest names in the wine business.

July and August are the worst months of the year for business in Hong Kong as the summer holidays put a real dent in everyone’s revenues. Even this little Wine Times blog saw a drop in readership of around 20-25 per cent last summer as people stay off their computers, away from Hong Kong’s restaurants and bars and head away from the city to their places of origin or just to a place where they can completely forget about the rat race for a few weeks (whilst plying themselves with cheap booze and Pina Coladas by the pool)!

September sees the city back in top gear and the eleventh hosting of the annual Restaurant and Bar show at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition centre. Probably the best local tradeshow there is, this is the time for those in the industry to get together and talk shop, whilst scouring the aisles for the best wines they can find before the traditional changes in wine lists that take place here normally in October. We also assume (and you know what they say about assumption) that there will be the second showing of the Decanter Asian Wine Awards, but this is yet to be confirmed, although it took place on the 3^rd September 2013, we see no reason why this will not go ahead again in 2013.

October is, like March, normally one of the best months in the year as people have gotten over the summer holiday fever and are very much back to work. Strangely, October 2012 was a poor month. We think this is because the usual influx of traders to the annual Canton Fair in China are actually staying in China’s hotels and not here in Hong Kong. The quality of hotels in China has vastly improved and, to be fair, it is cheaper there than it is here and with people on business budgets these days, this city loses out. But, on the bright side, the weather is great this time of year as the humidity falls and it’s a great time for beach barbeques, boat trips and other outdoor excursions that involve copious amounts of alcohol! Expect to see the annual Wine and Dine Festival hosted from the 31^st October to the 3^rd November this year and it will have moved from its traditional home of West Kowloon to the Central Waterfront this year. Do not expect though the organization to be any better this year as we are led to believe it will be the same incompetent organizers again in 2013.

November kicks off with the ongoing Wine and Dine Festival and also sees the annual return of the Hong Kong International Wine and Spirits Fair from the 7^th to 9^th November. Open to the public on the final day of the show (Saturday) this event draws as many public attendees in one day than it does industry professionals over the three days, so it’s a day to mark down in your calendars for a pre Christmas wine fix. The month also sees another sporting tournament the International Cricket Sixes held at the Kowloon Cricket Club annually. Last year it was sponsored by Brokenwood wines (imported here by Cellarmaster Wines) but, as usual in a sport which has so much behind the scenes politics, we never really know if it’s going to take place until a couple of week s before its scheduled. Watch this space!

As December hits we realise we have gone full circle and yet another year is about to end. We find ourselves asking “where did the year go and why can’t I remember much of it?” Once again we have the usual intense intake of wine as the festive season draws near but, as we’ve just finished that and the liver and head are still reeling, I think I’ll wait another eleven months before I start considering Christmas and New Year again.

So, another busy year ahead in the wine world of Hong Kong. This is just a brief synopsis of the year ahead, of course, we will be reporting on all these events and many more as I sure the plethora of wine tastings, dinners, auctions, impromptu dinners, pairings and the rest will be going on as usual. But, one thing to look out for is the Wine Times website that should be ready by early March this year. We will keep the blog going for our inane ramblings about things but the site will be more informative, probably a little less opinionated and have much more information on the wine suppliers and events that thrive in Hong Kong’s wine business. All that’s left to do is wish everybody a very happy, prosperous and healthy 2013 and may you drink the best wines you can afford….and more! Happy new year to you all….