Kanpai! Read why Japan is the newest “it” region for wines

GOING GREEN

With our luggage in tow, we took the fast train to Yamanashi, said to be the birthplace of wine production in the country. There are two prominent grape varieties grown in the area: the pink-skinned Koshu, which makes for crisp and citrusy white wine; and the pale-coloured hybrid Muscat Bailey A, responsible for fruity reds.

I got my introduction at Four Hearts Cafe, a 23-year-old ingredient-based restaurant run by the animated Mr Oki. He served family-style dishes matched with Kurambon wines. The semi-dried persimmons filled with butter and cashew, oven-roasted Fujizakura pork with locally harvested fruits, and pasta carbonara with free range eggs from Mt Yatsugatake, were matched beautifully with Kurambon's multi-awarded bottles and fourth-generation owner Nozawa-san's regaling tales, including the derivation of the winery's name. It apparently came from a children's story by writer Kenji Miyazawa.

The following day made for a deeper familiarisation and appreciation for Japanese wines as we visited five breweries in the area, starting with a relatively new and chic winery that opened in 2019.

Sitting on top of the hill north of Koshu city, 98 Wines has a farm, brewery and a homestay spread out over two hectares of land. It even has a restaurant where stay-in guests can exclusively enjoy soba kaiseki along with any of their beverages—from coffee and grape juices to beer, which owner Yuki Hirayama-san also brews himself—accompanied by a dramatic view of Mt Fuji.

Founded in 1890, Marufuji Winery boasts a rich history of being at the forefront of Katsunuma winemaking. Offering more than 20 varieties of wine, including its flagship brand Rubaiyat, the 133-year-old company continues to ferment their wine in old stone and concrete tanks, which has the advantage of stabilising the temperature, consequently making for a smooth and gradual fermentation. Their storage room is half-buried in a slope to again regulate the temperature. It has also become a venue for concerts, something they have been doing for more than 30 years now.

Producing wine since 1937, Katsunuma Winery specialises and is contracted mostly on the production of wine from the Koshu grape. Its label Aruga Branca houses several styles, from Brilhante's dry sparkling white to Doce's sweet dessert wine. Originally, the brothers who run the business tried hedge trimming, which is the mainstream process in Europe and the US, but they later realised that the traditional trellising was more suitable for Yamanashi, where there is a lot of rainfall. The change has worked in their favour and they are now producing approximately 400,000 bottles of the Koshu wine annually.

The youngest winery of the pack, the six-year-old Matsuzaka Green Vineyards, was once a semiconductor plant before CEO Hiroshi Matsuzaka-san decided to turn it into a wine business, a strategic move made due to the stiff price competition among Asian tech players. They got their license in 2016 and a year after, they were introduced into the market as a brand with wine names represented by the letters K or B depending on the grape variety, then followed by a three-digit number that symbolises the grape harvest area, processing method and production method.

Our last stop was at Lumiere, a family-owned boutique winery established in 1885. They take pride in the fact that all their grapes are harvested by hand and hand-sorted to reserve the best ones for their high-class wines. Fermentation happens inside stone tanks made of granite walls, which were built in 1901. The skins are weighted down with bamboo planks to allow for natural leavening as well as allow for good carbon dioxide flow. This method is unique in the world, and the stone fermenter is registered as a cultural property of Japan and a Japanese heritage.

Visiting these wineries have opened my eyes—and palate—to a world that holds so much potential and promise. It's no wonder that Japan has been reported to be the newest "it" region when it comes to wine.

KOJI TOWN

Already in high spirits, we hit the road to go to Matsumoto in the Nagano Prefecture and park ourselves at the beautiful Matsumoto Jujo Hotel. After having oyaki, a grilled savoury pancake, and apple cider at the cafe which used to be a training house for geishas, I decided to work up my appetite by exploring the property.

Notable features include the front desk that doubles as a bar, as well as the bookstore, which contains over 10,000 books curated by Yoshitaka Haba and Hiraku. It's a renovated building that was originally a Japanese ryokan. There is a pink-tiled swimming pool, where the public bath used to be, that lord over floor-to-ceiling shelves, making for stylish reading nooks. And over at the children's book section, the small pool has become a sandbox of sorts where kids can dive in a pond of soft balls.

My suite lent the same degree of fantasy, for an adult this time, with warm water waiting for me. The room was very much open, providing easy access to the galley kitchen, meditating room, and a living area equipped with a meditative city view.

The Matsumoto Jujo Hotel's restaurant was just as inviting with a live wood fire burning at the grill station located in the middle of the room. Our degustation at Restaurant 367 (named so because 365 days + culture + history) celebrated the produce of the mountains and the sea: dashi jelly with dried yuzu pulp; burdock with kidney beans and sauteed greens; carp sushi with sansho pepper; steamed miso bread; and soba with chicken stock and parsley oil. These delectable were paired with a medley of cocktails and mocktails—from local wine to juices such as fermented apple tea with passionfruit, and beet with tonic water.

SIPPING RICE

I woke up the next day raring to travel to Okaya and have a flight of the country's national beverage—sake. After a traditional lunch prepared by Chef Takae-san in Kagura just across the Suwa Grand Shrine, we headed over to Route 30 in Suwa, Nagano to begin our five-brewery-tasting. According to recognised 20th-century writer Takeshi Kalko, this region ranks as having amongst the best sakes in the country because of the high-quality subsoil water that flows from the Kirigamine Highlands and the cool climate. These, matched with the undeniable skills of generations-old families, get you a smooth and sexy alcoholic beverage.

All found a walking distance away from each other, the breweries each has a distinguishing character evident in their drinks. Maihime, encased in old-style earthen walls, brews using traditional techniques; Reijin, founded in 1789, has aged sakes that have been brewing for more than 30 years; Honkin sells sake named after the brewers; Yokobue is handmade to showcase the essential flavour of sake; and Masumi uses yeast no.7, discovered from moromi.

After an afternoon of shots, I found necessary relief and comfort at the SHISHI-IWA-HOUSE at Karuizawa. Made up of three wooden (pine, cypress and maple) architectures designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architects and lodged within a wild forest, the chic hotel became our temporary retreat before heading back to Narita for our flight.

Our trip was capped with a memorable meal by chef Masashi Okamoto-san of scallop carpaccio with walnuts and caviar, lobster and comte cheese agnolotti, snapper and Jerusalem artichoke soup, and smoked duck breast with seasonal vegetables.

As I sipped my glass of Chardonnay from a Japanese winery, I couldn't help but wonder just how rich and colourful the country's drinking culture is. The food is already a given, knowing how much it is beloved and renowned worldwide. But the beverages are an amazing world unto itself. One that surely deserves to be acknowledged just as much.

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