Australia's Treasury Wine Estates is set to start selling French wine to China as it seeks to gain a wider share of the world's fastest growing wine market.
Treasury Wine already sells some of its luxury and premium Australian wine brands in China, including Penfolds, and started selling some of its best US brands there in late 2016.
But many Chinese consumers still hold French luxury wines in the highest regard, partly because of the tradition and prestige associated with them.
So, Treasury Wine has launched a new brand for the China market, called Maison de Grand Esprit, with wines sourced from some of France's best vineyards and bottled in France.
The company has not bought vineyards in France to supply the wine.
"French wine is one of the most sought after country-of-origin wines across north Asia as consumers see this category as a benchmark for quality," Treasury Wine chief executive Michael Clarke said on Monday.
"We have created Maison de Grand Esprit as a brand built from multiple regions within the one country but, importantly, the wine is produced to a consistent quality standard, as opposed to various regional winemaking standards."
Treasury will start selling its French wines in China, Japan and southeast Asia in November and expects to sell part of the range in the US and Australia some time before the end of the year.
The new French wine brand will have four pricing levels, ranging from the top tier "Grand Esprit" wines from around 1,598 RMB (about $A309), to the mass prestige "Miraculeuse" wines at 168 RMB (about $A33).
Treasury Wine launched the new French brand at a VIP event for Chinese buyers in Paris over the weekend.
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