Yasuyuki Yumoto (above) is inspired by Italy. He has a lovely small winery and vineyard in the northern part of Nagano prefecture, and he decided that this would be a…
Nagano wine region, Japan (8) – Votano Wine
Tsubota Mitsuhiro (above) was inspired by Barolo to start making wine: that’s a good starting point, I guess. He began his vineyard in 2001, and now has 1.3 hectares on…
Nagano wine region, Japan (7) – Villa d’Est Garden Farm and Winery
Villa d’Est Garden Farm and Winery is the project of Toyoo Tamamura, who is an artist and a writer. He moved here in 1992 and initially just planted a small…
Nagano wine region, Japan (6) – Manns Wines Komoro Winery
Manns wines is owned by soy sauce producer Kikkoman, and there are two sites. This, the Komoro Winery, is where the proper Japan wines (the legal term for wines made…
Nagano wine region, Japan (5) – Obusé Winery, Domaine Sogga
This is one of Nagano’s best producers. Domaine Sogga, also known as Obusé Winery, is based in Obusé and is run by Akihiko Soga (just the one ‘g’ in his…
Nagano wine region, Japan (4) – Kusunoki Winery
Shigeyuki Kusunoki started his vineyard in 2004, and then built his winery in 2011. This is a second career for Shigeyuki, who was a salary man for 20 years working…
Nagano wine region, Japan (3) – Hyashi Nouen
Hayashi Nouen is one of the big players in the Nagano region. Founded in 1911, they have 45 hectares of vines of their own and contract a further 30. In…
Nagano wine region, Japan (2) – Domaine Nakajima
Yutaka Nakajima was studying at chef school when he came across wine. He’s a big fan of natural wine, and also has a strong affection for Alsace. He has experience…
Nagano wine region, Japan (1) – Kido Winery
This was a good start to my visits in Nagano prefecture, Japan. Akihito Kido was born in Aichi prefecture, and he studied winemaking and viticulture at the University of Yamanashi….