The owner of the Sunday Times Wine Club will launch a sister wine club with Hong Kong's English-language newspaper, The South China Morning Post.

Direct Wines will launch the club under the Laithwaites name on 19 September.

Chief executive Simon McMurtrie told decanter.com, 'We are expecting a big bang response rather than a slow burn.

'South China Morning Post is the leading English-language newspaper and the Laithwaites brand is launching with lots of advertising.'

Direct Wines launched its operation in Hong Kong earlier this year with an offer to local HSBC bank customers. The company said it had received double the number of orders expected and ran out of stock.

The move follows the abolition of the 40% tax on wine last year. McMurtrie added, 'If Hong Kong proves to be successful, we have plans for China.'

The mail-order club will offer mixed cases with French wines expected to represent up to 50% of the range.

Direct Wines also launched a wine club with German national newspaper Die Welt in June this year and the Wall Street Journal in September 2008. It also has partnerships with three of Australia's leading dailies.