Ningxia's Yinchuan chosen for Concours Mondial de Bruxelles

Yinchuan, Ningxia Hui autonomous region, is set to host next year's Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, an international wine and spirits competition.

Roughly 400 judges from more than 50 countries will gather in Ningxia for the competition, giving the city an opportunity to showcase its wine development.

This year's host, the city of Leon, Mexico, handed over the Grand Prix flag to the Yinchuan delegation on June 9. The delegation hosted a wine tasting event to celebrate. They featured 13 typical Chinese-style wines, which were well received.

As the core of the Helan Mountains wine region, Yinchuan has rapidly developed in recent years. The city has 270,000 mu (about 18,000 hectares) of vineyards, with 144 wineries and grape planting enterprises.

The annual wine production reaches 75 million bottles, with a comprehensive industrial output value of 30 billion yuan ($4.14 billion). It is China's largest concentrated wine grape growing area. Foreign and domestic wine companies such as Pernod Ricard, Hennessy, Changyu and Great Wall have invested in building wineries in Yinchuan.

Yinchuan wineries have won more than 1,100 awards in international wine competitions. The region's wines have been featured on State banquet wine lists and selected as official gifts for foreign guests. Helan Red wine became the designated wine for the 19th Asian Games, and wines from the region are exported to over 40 countries and regions.