Here Are China’s Top 10 Sommeliers

Stephen Yang

Entering Hō Wine Bar & Eatery in Chengdu, a southwestern city of China, the wine list will greet you with a psychological test: you will choose your preference based on your five senses, and Stephen Yang, the director and sommelier, will find the right wine for you. Yang designed the test to help customers with different levels of familiarity with wine to explore the one for them in the Sichuan bistro, providing local cuisine featuring spicy and numbing flavours.

Yang nicely demonstrates his expertise in Champagne. In 2022, Hō Wine Bar & Eatery won five awards in the China Best Champagne List, and Yang was crowned the best Champagne sommelier. 

His passion for wine is palpable, and he believes in the power of resilience, especially in challenging times. “Strong individuals never complain about their circumstances,” he asserts, reflecting on the impact of the pandemic and the subsequent economic downturn. “While consumer desires and spending power may have diminished, many establishments continue to thrive. By maintaining an optimistic mindset and creating fresh styles and methods, we can draw guests in and offer them a drinking experience that’s distinct from enjoying wine at home.”

To bring this vision to life, Yang developed the “Five Senses Wine Selection System”, an engaging method that analyzes customers’ visual, tactile, auditory, olfactory, and gustatory preferences to help them choose the right wine. “Using these innovative ideas, we aim to attract more patrons to enjoy wine in our space,” he explains.

Yang’s fascination with wine began in 2009 during his college years, when he was studying broadcasting and hosting. At that time, the role of a sommelier was still relatively unknown in China, but young Yang found it to be “cool, hip, and new.”

Prior to founding Hō Wine Bar & Eatery, Yang honed his skills as a sommelier at  several restaurants and bars in Chengdu, including The Bridge, Sarment and Mumashan La Cadiere Clubhouse.