OUR PEOPLE
Her name and her vision are the driving force and the inspiration for our wine brand. A celebrated businesswoman in her homeland of China, she was among that historic first wave of brave, pioneering female entrepreneurs of China who established their own businesses. One of the greatest highlights of her life is her participation in the building of the Beijing National Stadium, Bird’s Nest, which became one of the sites of the historic 2008 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Helena retired from a long career in building supplies in China before she immigrated to Canada and settled in Richmond, BC. She fell in love not only with BC’s celebrated landscapes but also with the Okanagan’s growing and innovative wine and wine industry. Guided by her mentor, Bill Lui of One Faith Vineyards, developer of one of BC’s highest quality wines, she became a WSET graduate and invested time and energy in learning the art of producing fine wine from some of the best vineyards and winemakers in the Okanagan, Napa, California and Bordeaux, France.
A generous woman at heart, she is also an avid patron of the arts, and actively supports the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation and the Richmond Hospital Foundation.
Her dream is to create a legacy of premium quality fine wines produced right here in her beloved BC, which her people in her homeland of China can enjoy for generations to come. We invite you to join her in her journey.
TIMELINE
2008 Successfully completed Bird’s Nest Olympic Stadium project
2009 Immigrated to Vancouver, BC and settled in Chateau Helena
2010 Created the wine brand of Chateau Helena
2013 Harvested the first vintage of the Chateau Helena Grand Vin
2016 Released the first vintage of the Chateau Helena Grand Vin and also became an official citizen of Canada
BILL LIU
Chateau Director
Bill Lui grew up in BC and fell in love with the beautiful Okanagan wine regions. A WSET graduate, he also graduated from the premier winemaking school UC Davis and has a Certificate of Winemaking. He travels and visits vineyards around the world, focussing on Napa, California and Bordeaux, France, continually honing and developing his experience, knowledge, and palate. Assisted by a formidable team of hand-picked experts under his inspired direction, Chateau Helena has maintained the strictest of standards and continues to scale the heights of quality.
Bill is also the inspiration for and the owner of One Faith Vineyard in Oliver, BC, Canada, creating an ambitious First Growth vintage from the Okanagan with score of 95 points.
RICHARD CLEAVE
Viticulturalist
Richard Cleave has been growing grapes in the Okanagan for 38 years and is one of the pioneers of viticulture in British Columbia.
He planted and has managed the site of the One Faith Vineyard since 1992 and also owned his own iconic vineyard. He has grown grapes for leading wineries in the Okanagan and has in-depth knowledge of the terroirs. Richard was pleased to work with us to apply radical techniques to produce outstanding fruit from the sites of Chateau Helena.