How to Say “Red wine” in Chinese
Food and dining · HSK 2
"Red wine" in Chinese is 红酒 (hóng jiǔ). 红酒 (hóngjiǔ) is the everyday word and covers any red wine. The fuller term 红葡萄酒 (hóng pútáo jiǔ, 'red grape wine') appears on menus and labels but sounds formal in speech.
Primary translation
红酒
hóng jiǔ
Traditional: 紅酒
Variants by register
Formal
一杯红葡萄酒
yī bēi hóng pú táo jiǔ
Casual
来杯红酒
lái bēi hóng jiǔ
When to use it
红酒 (hóngjiǔ) is the everyday word and covers any red wine. The fuller term 红葡萄酒 (hóng pútáo jiǔ, 'red grape wine') appears on menus and labels but sounds formal in speech. Red wine is hugely associated with business dinners and gift-giving; a bottle of French red is a classic 送礼 (sònglǐ) gift. Be ready for the 干杯 culture: at banquets, hosts may toast repeatedly, and red wine is often mixed with Sprite (雪碧 Xuěbì) to make it easier to drink fast. That sounds sacrilegious to Europeans but is genuinely common.
Example sentences
我喜欢喝红酒。
Wǒ xǐ huān hē hóng jiǔ.
I like drinking red wine.
这瓶红酒是法国的。
Zhè píng hóng jiǔ shì Fǎ guó de.
This bottle of red wine is French.
红酒配牛排最合适。
Hóng jiǔ pèi niú pái zuì hé shì.
Red wine pairs best with steak.