Japan Wine Journal
Japanese Wines: An Overview
Written by Nick Rowan in collaboration with Weinkontor Sommer
Japanese wines long seemed difficult to access and exotic, with many consumers unsure what to expect or where to find them.
Thanks to importers such as Weinkontor Sommer, who are committed to championing Japanese wine, they are now available in Germany, feature on the wine lists of many top restaurants and can be purchased directly from www.weinkontorsommer.de .
Following the fashion for heavy, highly extracted, high-alcohol wines, there is a growing trend towards greater authenticity, subtlety, finesse and lower alcohol. These are all natural characteristics of Japanese wines.
The first wines in Japan were made from the wild-growing Yamabudō (mountain grape), around 2000 to 4000 BC. The first grapes suitable for cultivation and winemaking arrived in Japan with Buddhism along the Silk Road in the 8th century. The Buddha of Healing Medicine was the first form of Buddha to reach Japan. He is often depicted with grapes, and for the following 1,200 years grapes were regarded as medicinal and cultivated for this purpose.
Yamanashi
Koshu (Kōshū) was first cultivated on a larger scale in Katsunuma in the Kōfu Basin in Yamanashi Prefecture, formerly known as Kai Province or Koshu, which gave the grape variety its name. Today, Yamanashi is the centre of viticulture and winemaking in Japan, with Koshu as its signature white-wine grape and the hybrid Muscat Bailey A as its signature red-wine grape.
Today, these are the most widely cultivated white and red wine grapes in Japan. They are grown predominantly in Yamanashi, which has the country's oldest wineries, the largest number of wineries and the greatest wine production.
For much of its history, Koshu was grown on large pergola-trained vines that can span up to 50 square metres and carry 500 to 800 bunches on a single vine. The grapes were cultivated primarily for their appearance and sold in supermarkets as table grapes. It was only in the late 19th century, during the Meiji Restoration, that winemaking was recognised as a modern industry and Koshu came into focus as a grape variety for wine production.
Early attempts at winemaking were unsuccessful. The arrival of phylloxera and two world wars made matters more difficult. Afterwards, imported North American rootstocks and Vitis labrusca grapes dominated and were used primarily to produce sweet wines.
As European dry wines gained popularity in the 1970s, Koshu once again came under pressure from inexpensive imported grape concentrate and wine. A group of visionary winemakers in Yamanashi, including Marufuji Winery, believed in Koshu's potential and invested in international collaboration and research to improve quality.
From Our Range
Domaine Rubaiyat 2021
Marufuji, Rubaiyat. A red wine with elegance and structure that reflects Yamanashi's international style.
In 2010, Koshu was recognised by the OIV, allowing Koshu wine to be sold in Europe, supported by the Koshu of Japan organisation. In 2013, GI Yamanashi became Japan's first geographical indication.
Development of Koshu
It took decades for winemakers to discover and perfect the Koshu styles available today. At first, the focus was on improving the wines' generally rather flat character through must clarification and fermentation at low temperatures.
Sur lie was developed by Château Mercian and gives the wine greater weight and body on the palate. Attention then turned to citrus character, which can be achieved through early harvesting or, in the case of one of the largest and most iconic Koshu producers, Katsunuma Jyozo, through single-vineyard Koshu. Katsunuma Jyozo's Aruga Branca Issehara displays a natural citrus character that could easily be mistaken for Sauvignon Blanc. It was the first commercially produced single-vineyard Koshu on a significant scale and is now one of the winery's flagship wines.
From Our Range
Aruga Branca Issehara 2023
Single-vineyard Koshu defined by clarity, freshness and citrus expression.
In the course of exploring Koshu's full potential, Katsunuma Jyozo was among the innovative wineries that experimented with cryogenic freezing of the grapes to concentrate their aromas. This process is still used today for Aruga Branca Doce, one of the few sweet Koshu wines currently produced.
From Our Range
Aruga Branca Doce 2024
A sweet Koshu style with concentrated aromas, rare and full of character.
Further styles emerged with sparkling wine made from Koshu, such as Fujiclair's Koshu Sparkling, a Brut Nature with 14 months on the lees, as well as orange Koshu. In fact, a Japanese Koshu was one of the first orange wines from outside Georgia to win an international award.
From Our Range
Koshu Sparkling 2021
Brut Nature, with fine bubbles, clarity, umami character and excellent food-pairing versatility.
Iwasaki Jozo, also known as Honjyo Wine, is a long-established cooperative that preserves classic Koshu styles while also modernising its techniques and approach. One example is the orange Tokiwa ni Moyuru Koshu 2022 with 14 days of skin contact.
From Our Range
Tokiwa ni Moyuru Koshu 2022
Orange wine made from Koshu, with depth, structure and spice – an excellent partner for food.
Hokkaidō
Over the past ten years, Hokkaidō has developed into Japan's most exciting wine region and has overtaken Nagano to become the country's second-largest region for wine production and grape growing. Takahiko Soga of Domaine Takahiko in Yoichi and Bruce Gutlove of 10R in Iwamizawa paved the way for new wineries. Takahiko's Nana Tsu Mori made headlines around the world and attracted further wineries that brought economic and social vitality to the region.
Bruce opened Japan's first custom-crush facility, enabling grape growers to vinify their own wines. This makes small-scale production possible and attracts many newcomers who can begin making wine before opening wineries of their own. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are attracting attention in Hokkaidō, although Zweigelt and Kerner also produce charming wines that are often overlooked.
NIKI Hills was founded by extreme adventurers who climbed mountains and crossed Antarctica, and produces a range of high-quality Kerner wines, including the fresh, aromatic Hatsuyuki.
From Our Range
Hatsuyuki 2024
Kerner from Yoichi, Hokkaidō. Aromatic, precise and highly drinkable.
Nagano
Nagano developed into Japan's second-largest region for grape growing and winemaking until Hokkaidō overtook it in 2023. There are five recognised wine valleys across two main areas. Four lie in the west around Shiojiri City and Kikyōgahara, where Merlot became the signature grape variety in the 1970s. This first put Nagano on the wine map in Japan and, a decade later, internationally.
The Chikumagawa Wine Valley in eastern Nagano, along the Chikuma River, is one of Japan's most dynamic regions, with wine academies, many small wineries and custom-crush facilities. Premium Chardonnay is the main driver of its reputation, particularly from the northern Hokushin area near Nagano City. Further south, upstream, many small wineries are clustered around Ueda and Tomi and work with a broad range of grape varieties. Pinot Noir and Petit Manseng are among the emerging stars of the Chikumagawa Valley.
Yamagata
Yamagata lies in the north-east of Japan's main island, between Hokkaidō and Nagano. Its cooler climate marks the northernmost limit of Koshu cultivation in Japan, while the region has more recently developed a reputation for very high-quality Cabernet Sauvignon. Producers from across Japan source their Cabernet Sauvignon from Yamagata.
Takahata Winery is one of the largest wineries in Yamagata Prefecture and has ambitious plans to become one of Japan's premium wineries while keeping intervention in the vineyard and cellar to a minimum. Its owner, Hombo Shuzo, has extensive experience in premium beverages through whisky as well as its own wineries in Yamanashi and Nagano, and had the foresight to recognise Yamagata's potential as a premium wine region.
Takahata Winery's 2018 Zodiaque Cabernet Sauvignon is an example of this style of Cabernet Sauvignon and a rare opportunity to find mature Japanese wine outside Japan. Prise de Mousse Chardonnay 2017 is an example of a premium Japanese sparkling wine made by the traditional method as a Blanc de Blancs, with five months of maturation in French oak barriques and a long 48-month bottle fermentation.
From Our Range
Zodiaque Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
Mature Cabernet style from Yamagata, with depth, power and elegance.
From Our Range
Prise de Mousse Chardonnay 2017
Traditional bottle fermentation, Blanc de Blancs, complex and precise, with maturation in French oak barriques.
Further Reading
All this and more is covered in detail in Nick Rowan's book Japanese Wine. It is available from Amazon, with signed copies available directly from www.winefogg.com.
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