How China conquered France’s wine country

French connoisseurs sold the Chinese pomp and prestige, until they started manufacturing it themselves. In 1996, Chinese premier Li Peng surprised his audience at the National People’s Congress by toasting the Ninth Five-Year Plan with red wine: “Drinking fruit wines is helpful to our health, does not waste grain, and is good for social ethics,” he announced. For China’s rapidly growing underclass, this gesture signalled a commitment to rein in the fraud and waste epitomized by party banquets