Spain’s wine industry has begun a new round of promotion in China with three professional workshops in Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai, as the sector looks to strengthen its position in one of its most important export markets.

The Interprofessional Wine Organization of Spain, known by its Spanish acronym OIVE, said the events brought together about 150 professionals from the hotel, restaurant and catering trade during the last week of April. The workshops were designed for importers, distributors, sommeliers and restaurant operators who influence how imported wines are selected and presented to Chinese consumers.

Each session lasted half a day and was limited to 50 participants. The program was built around two parts: a tasting of six Spanish wines from different protected designation of origin regions and a professional seminar focused on pairing wine with food and on best practices for selling imported Spanish wine in China. OIVE said the format was intended to combine technical training with direct contact between producers’ representatives and local trade professionals.

The organization said the goal is to improve knowledge of Spanish wine in China, support sales and encourage more recommendations in the professional channel. China remains a market with strong potential for Spanish exports, even as competition from other wine-producing countries remains intense and consumer habits continue to evolve.

The workshops are part of a broader international promotion strategy for Spain’s wine sector in 2026. OIVE said the effort is tied to what it calls the “Spanish Wine Story,” a common message meant to present the sector abroad through themes such as diversity, origin, quality and connection to territory. The organization said it wants to build a clearer and more consistent image of Spanish wine among foreign trade professionals and consumers.

In Beijing, the workshop was led by Lyu Xiaoshen, who holds an MBA in wine business management and has more than 10 years of experience working with wineries in Bordeaux, Rioja and Ribera del Duero. In Guangzhou, the sessions were led by Li Tingshan, a certified WSET educator and specialist in Spanish wine who won China’s National Sommelier Championship and is widely recognized as one of the country’s leading wine educators. In Shanghai, Sam Chen directed the program. Chen is an official educator for La Rioja and other international regions and won China’s National Blind Tasting Championship in 2017.

OIVE said it plans to continue its international schedule later this year in Mexico, where Spain is the leading supplier of wine by value, and in South Korea, a growing market that has become the third-largest wine importer in Asia after China and Japan. The organization also said new destinations including Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom have been added in 2026 under a European Union-funded program carried out with ViniPortugal.