Buying Wine and Spirits in Beijing or Xingang
 

Is it possible to purchase inported Wines(Australian etc.) or Spirits in China and if so from what stores.

Is a great store, a branch of a S'pore based store called Ninth Vine in Beijing. Do not know address. You could look up their website www.ninthvine.com.sg. E-mail the owner Peng Yam and tell hime Sameera referred you. i went to his shop in S'pore and great selection of Aus wines from less well known vineyards. ENJOY!

There are options in many expat-dominated areas in Beijing. There's a specialist wine importer on the ground floor of the Kempinski Hotel/Lufthansa Centre complex, through the hotel towards the office building at the rear.

Branches of the expat-pleasing convenience store Jenny Lou, such as that at the West Gate of Chaoyang Park, also have a fair range of choice, and for rather lower prices.

Needless to say, if desperate, any major hotel will sell you imported wine, at a stiff price. The best selection, and the lowest prices for imported wines in a restaurant, in the whole of Beijing is at The Courtyard Restaurant, at Donghua Men.

Peter N-H
http://members.axion.net/~pnh/China.html

I forgot to add, almost any supermarket, especially those in the basements of larger deparment stores and mall (and almost every mall has one) sells a range of imported spirits, and sometimes a limited selection of wines. Even small convenience stores (xiaomaibu) often have bottle of a few foreign spirits.

In short, none of this is very hard to obtain.

Peter N-H
http://members.axion.net/~pnh/China.html

It's possible - but really expensive!

While the import rates have been falling from the 65% they have been for several years, there is still a 25% import tarrif, and that's BEFORE the destributors and retailers add on their profits!

So, if you're looking to buy wine to enjoy on the Great Wall (there is no open container law here), you'll be fine, but you're better off either buying it at duty free or bringing it with you!

What do you call expensive? We are looking to purchasing at least a case so bringing it along is not an option.

Well, imported wine is subject to a 25% import tarrif before the distributors and retailers add on their profit margins, so it will be roughly 30 - 40% more expensive than if you buy it in the country of origin.

That said, however, for those of us who really NEED to buy imported wine in China :) , there are deals to be had. You can look at actual prices online (and you'll get a better deal buying from distributors instead of retail) - we use Montrose, and they sell direct to consumers both in Shanghai and Beijing (you can even place your order now, and they will deliver to your hotel or wherever you're staying in Beijing - just specify in your order & give them an e-mail contact). They also have great end-of-bin and other specials. Their website is:

http://www.montrosechina.com/default.asp