Global winemakers and experts on orange wine (also known as “amber wine” and “white wine with skin maceration”), will converge in Shanghai on 7 November for a landmark half-day symposium to explore this rapidly expanding wine category in the Chinese market in front of 80+ top sommeliers and wine professionals.

Presented by Meiburg Wine Media, in conjunction with ProWine and VinosVivo Wine Media, "Skin-2-Skin: Orange Wine Symposium" will be led by Master of Wine Debra Meiburg MW and feature a star-studded panel of Asian and international experts and winemakers, including keynote speaker and global authority on orange wine – Simon J Woolf, author of Amber Revolution: How the World Learned to Love Orange Wine.

Simon J Woolf said, "I am thrilled to be participating in the 'Skin-2-Skin: Orange Wine Symposium' ". Having recently visited Shanghai for the HolaVino Orange Wine Fair, I saw the burgeoning interest and passion for orange wines among China's wine lovers, sommeliers and importers. Now is clearly the perfect moment to hold an in-depth event for China's wine professionals to help them better understand these wines and how to effectively choose, list, sell and present them to their customers".

Master of Wine, Debra Meiburg MW said, “the 'Skin-2-Skin: Orange Wine Symposium' is a momentous event exploring the International Organisation of Vine and Wine’s (OIV) newest official category of wine: 'White Wine with Maceration'.  The OIV, the intergovernmental organisation which deals with technical and scientific aspects of viticulture and winemaking, announced this new 8thcategory of 'special wines' in December 2020 - a significant development in the wine world”.

Three in-depth panel discussions entitled – Part 1: History, Evolution & Revolution;  Part 2: What the Tech? Techniques & Technical Speak; and Part 3: Global Comparative Tasting which will enable VIP guests (top sommeliers, importers, media, educators and influencers) to gain incomparable insights and perspective on this exciting,  yet widely misunderstood category.

Significant of the growing interest and trend for orange wines in China, August also saw a large Orange Wine Festival take place in Shanghai for China's wine lovers, featuring a presentation by Simon J Woolf, large tasting event, and an orange wine competition.

Master of Wine, Debra Meiburg, Founding Director of Meiburg Wine Media and the “Skin-2-Skin: Orange Wine Symposium” host, said “While many people have only recently heard of these wines and think they are a new trend, they are actually ancient wines, made in the original winemaking technique – buried underground in clay vessels (Georgian qvevri) and are believed to be among the first wines ever made, more than 8000 years ago.  These wines are certainly not a fad, signalled by the OIV’s inclusion as an official wine category. But seriously – Orange? Amber? Skin contact? Macerated white wines? Even the name for these wines is confusing! Wine professionals all over the world have grappled with how to list them, explain them and sell them, which is why we are bringing top local and global experts to straighten out this confusion and offer world-class discussion on the topic for the passionate wine community in China".

Winemakers from Georgia, Austria, Slovenia, China and more will be present to join the discussion, guide the tasting, share their experiences and discuss their various markets. Further speakers and winemakers will be announced later. 

Date :   7 November 2023 (Tuesday)

Time:    13:30-17:00

Venue:  The Hongta Hotel, A Luxury Collection Hotel, Shanghai (He Ballroom)

Attendees: Sommeliers, wine buyers, F&B Directors, importers, media, educators & opinion leaders

(By invitation mainly, with a few seats open for registration later. ) 

Wine professionals, including sommeliers, wine buyers, F&B directors, importers, media, educators and opinion leaders may register their interest to attend via QR code later. Final confirmation will be subject to availability. Further partnerships for wine producers, importers, wine products, service are available upon request, you're welcome to contact the following organizers for detail:

Alex Webster Aranchikov (English)

Meiburg Wine Media

Email: alex@mwminternational.com; WeChat: alex-w-aranchikov

Aileen Lee (Mandarin + Cantonese)

Meiburg Wine Media + VinosVivo Wine Media

Email: aileen@vinosvivo.com; WeChat: aileenleelyp