Helan Mountain Wine Region

The eastern foot of the Helan range gives stony well-drained alluvial soil, high sunshine, cold nights and very little rain, and since the 1980s it has become the most serious wine region in China, with over a hundred wineries, many of them small estates that build their own architecture and have won international awards for Cabernet-based reds. The distinctive practice here is winter burial: temperatures drop far enough to kill exposed vines, so every autumn the canes are laid down and covered with earth, then dug out and retied in spring, a labour cost no other major region carries.

What you actually see

• The estate wineries - boutique producers with their own buildings and cellars.
• The stony fans - vineyards on gravel below the Helan range.
• The winter burial - vines laid down and earthed over each autumn.
• The tastings - cellar visits and tasting rooms across the region.

When to go

May to October, with harvest from late August into October, the most interesting time to visit; winter shows the buried vines but most estates reduce visiting. Booking ahead is usually needed.

Honest expectations

Wineries are spread over many kilometres and a car is effectively required. Many require appointments and some do not receive visitors at all. Quality across the region varies widely.

Nearby

The Western Xia tombs lie among the vineyards; Yinchuan is east.