As Chinese New Year approaches, the frequency of border crossings between tax-free Hong Kong and the mainland has increased, alongside a rise in illegal wine smuggling.

On January 6, customs authorities in Shenzhen’s Dapeng District seized over 4,000 smuggled Penfolds wines, which had been falsely declared under a different name.

At the cargo checkpoint, authorities grew suspicious of batches of cargo imports labeled “Jubilee of Moon Centenarian Old Vine Wine.”  Upon examining the importation documents, they found that these were in fact smuggled Penfolds wines, totaling 4,068 bottles.

The seizure included 3,096 bottles of Penfolds BIN 28 and 972 bottles of Penfolds BIN 407, according to the authorities.

Due to China’s punitive tariffs of up to 218%, Australian wine exports to China have plummeted from around AU$1.2 billion annually to just AU$8 million.  Nevertheless, Penfolds, the most recognized Australian wine brand in China, continues to be highly sought after by consumers, driving illegal cross-border smuggling activities.

In June 2023, Hong Kong customs seized over 20,000 bottles of wines.  Earlier in December 2022, customs again confiscated 9,000 smuggled wines, and just two months prior, they uncovered a staggering 30,000 bottles.  In all three cases, Penfolds accounts for majority of the busted wines.