Helan Qingxue Jia Bei Lan Estate Red 2019 is an elegant and expressive red wine from Ningxia, China’s most acclaimed fine wine region at the foothills of the Helan Mountains. Crafted by the pioneering Helan Qingxue winery, this medium-bodied blend reveals vibrant red and dark berry fruit layered with plum, mint, roasting spices, capsicum, and dark olive notes. Fresh acidity, silky fine-grained tannins, and remarkable balance deliver a refined palate with both richness and finesse. Produced by one of China’s most internationally recognised wineries, the Jia Bei Lan series reflects the unique terroir and growing global reputation of Ningxia wines.

James Suckling | JS 92
Published: Dec 30, 2022

A rich, fruity but still elegant delivery from Ningxia’s Helan Qingxue, a producer known for freshness, elegance and poise in its wines. This is a medium-bodied red, showing a combo of red and minty black fruit, together with plums, currants, roasting spices, red capsicums and dark olives. Juicy and well-defined on the palate with fresh acidity and quite sweet, fine-grained tannins. Excellent balance here. Delicious now, but should hold very well for 5-6 years.

The Wine Advocate | RP 91
Published: Jan 26, 2024
Drink: 2023-2029

Helan Qingxue’s 2019 Jiabeilan Estate is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Gernischt and has a moderate to deep garnet appearance, with just a touch of orange appearing to the rim. The nose shows some relatively ripe, leafy dark fruit, including cassis, bramble, black cherry and black plum, with herbaceous notes of green bell pepper and grass and some vanilla, clove and toast; it spent 14 months in small-format, French oak, of which 25% was new. On the palate, this red blend is full-bodied, with crunchy, fine-grained, ripe tannins, some lifting acidity and relatively well-integrated 14% alcohol and shows some reasonably concentrated Cabernet-dominant, leafy dark fruit with judicious use of new oak. With its moderate to longer length, this is drinking well now but will also improve in bottle over the next five years or so.

Decanter Shanghai

Helan Qingxue Vineyard, the first demonstration vineyard in Ningxia, is located at the foot of Helan mountain at an altitude of 1,138 metres. With a 2.6-hectare vineyard of Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Marselan, Malbec among other varieties, the winery produces 60,000 bottles of wines per year.

In 2005, two legendary figures in the local wine industry, Rong Jian and Wang Fengyu, accompanied by a young winemaker, Zhang Jing, founded the winery, inviting Professor Li Demei to be their wine consultant.

The well-known Jia Bei Lan series of wines have won many awards in China and abroad, and in 2011, Jia Bei Lan Grand Reserve 2009 won an International Trophy at the Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA), the highest honour in the competition.

Helan Qingxue Vineyard shows full respect to nature and the soil and is regarded as one of China’s great wineries. Helan Qingxue and its people are committed to producing wines of great distinction, with a sense of place.