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Yao Ming, left, honored as "Visionary of the Year" and Shipping Xu, General Counsel DeWind, the winning bider for an autographed bottle of Yao Family Wine pose during the Asia Society Southern California 2013 annual gala held at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California, on Feb 19, 2013 [Photo/IC]

According to Yao Family Wine, 15 percent of its revenue now comes from the US, compared to almost zero when it started in late 2011.

Yao Family Wine's previous offerings, all reds, have cost from about 1,500 yuan a bottle for Yao Ming Napa Valley, to 6,000 yuan for a bottle for its premium Yao Ming Family Reserve. Napa Crest, the company's cheaper wine introduced in 2013, sells for 535 yuan, is still out of reach for ordinary Chinese, the company said.

Dong predicts that the luxury wine market in China won't rebound in the near future.

Together with Yao, many Chinese celebrities have focused on investing in vineyards, including Chinese actress Zhao Wei, who spent millions in 2011 to acquire a Bordeaux chateau and functional winery in France's Bordeaux area.

"Many celebrities chose to involve themselves with a business or an investment after rising to fame, and the wine industry is one of the popular fields because it's profitable," said Dong. "Not many celebrities succeeded in shifting their roles from public figures to a businessmen, but Yao made it."

Small California wineries are usually owned by wealthy people who do not care about losses, but the retired Chinese basketball center, who has attended classes on economics at Shanghai Jiaotong University after giving most of his school years to basketball, sees the wine business as more than a vanity investment with bare returns, said Dong.

"He wants his business to be successful and investors in his venture to expect a satisfactory return, and he knows how to do it," he said. "Being in the NBA has given Yao a more international perspective, while his fame has also gained him publicity for his wine products. For Yao, opening a winery is more than a passion project."

Yao's fame and national hero status in China is not the only factors that drive the purchases. The winery has also received significantly good reviews, with ratings between 90 and 98 points from top wine critic Robert Parker, Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast, said the company.

zhengxin@chinadaily.com.cn