The Story ofJapan Wine

NRIB
(National
Research Instituteof Brewing)

Attention-getting Japan Wine
Grapes and wines

1

Koshu

2
4
Muscat Bailey A
5
Yamabudo (A wild grape)
5
Wine grapes bred in Japan
6
European varieties
7
American varieties
8What is Japan Wine？
The characteristics of major wine-producing areas in Japan 10
12
The science on wine
Wines are being enjoyed worldwide. In this booklet,
we would like to introduce you to Japan Wine, hoping

March 20191

Attention-getting Japan Wine

Japanese food has become popular in the world. For

example, “WASHOKU; Traditional Dietary Cultures of
the Japanese” was registered as a UNESCO Intangible
Cultural Her itage list in 2013. A lthough there arecountless wines made all over the world, expressly
Japan Wine is of special interest because they match sowell with Japanese foods. The export volume of Japan
Wine is increasing over the world.
Japan Wine has won international wine competitions
due to the progress in viticulture and enology and theenthusiasm of the producers. Appreciation of theirhigh quality has grown in recent years. It would benice if Japan Wine would become more familiar towine lovers around the world.

you will compare it with that of the world.
First of all, we will review grape varieties and thecharacteristics of their wines produced in Japan. Next,
we will introduce the recently deﬁned “Japan Wine”
and the wine-producing areas in Japan. Finally, underTrends in the volume of Japan Wine shipped
16,000kl+4.6%

the title “The science on wine” we will explain some

15,367kl-2.5%

results from recent research in Japan.

The export of Japan Wine to the EU
Did you know Japan Wine is exported to various countries
including the EU (European Union) even though the volume islimited?
In order to display the grape variety on the label of a wine to
be exported to the EU, the name of grape varieties should be
included in the list of OIV(The International Organization ofVine and Wine) and the label should follow the producing
countryʼs rules.
In response to request from the wine production regions inJapan, the NRIB (National Research Institute of Brewing)
applied to register three wine grape varieties representing
Japan, Koshu, Muscat Bailey A and Yamasachi in cooperation
with relevant organizations. As a result, Koshu, Muscat Bailey
A and Yamasachi were listed on "International list of vine
varieties and their synonyms" in August 2010, in June 2013
and in November 2020 respectively.

15,677kl

14,988kl

15,000kl

14,000kl

2016

2017

2018

Trends in the volume of Japan Wine exported
80kl+24.1%

70kl
60kl

56kl

+3.0%

72kl

58kl

50kl
40kl
30kl

2016

2017

2018

Source: National Tax Agency Japan01

Grapes and wines
Wine Grapes

Koshu

roughly divided into three groups: European grapes(1868-1912). However, a grape was being cultivated in(Vitis vinifera), American wild grapes (Vitis labrusca etc.)

Japan long before that time. That grape is "Koshu."

There are many species of grapes, which can be

Wine making began in Japan during the Meiji era

and Asian wild grapes (Vitis coignetiae etc.). There are

Koshu is the former name of Yamanashi prefecture.

also varieties obtained by cross-breeding these species.

There are some legends about the introduction of thisThe ﬂavor and aroma of wine vary greatly depending

variety to Japan. Although it has long been cultivatedon the grape variety.

for table, it has also been used for wine making since

Traditional wine grape varieties belong to Vitis vinifera.

Meiji era. After 150 years from the ﬁrst wine made,Through the long history of wine-making in Europe,

Koshu is still the most widely used grape variety for

grape varieties were selected based on their cultural

Japan Wine.

characters and wine quality. However, these varieties
are suitable for the Mediterranean climate, which has
little rain in the summer. In Japan, its wet and hotsummer causes diseases and inhibits the developmentof characteristic colors and ﬂavors. Therefore, in Japan,
after trial and error by our early viticulturists, various
other kinds of grape came into use; Japanese varieties
such as Koshu and Muscat Bailey A and American

Characteristics of Koshu
Koshu is well adapted to Japa n's cl i mate.
Traditionally, Koshu is trained on pergolas. The scene
with many Koshu bunches hung on large pergolas is
beautif ul. Pergola st yle is said to be suitable forvigorous varieties, such as Koshu, and wet climate.

varieties such as Niagara and Concord. Recently,
Japanese viticulturists have developed viticultural
technologies suitable for Japan; consequently, thecultivation areas of European grapes such as Merlot
and Chardonnay are increasing.
Now, let us talk about the history and characteristicsof the major grape varieties used for Japan Wine.

The received amount of domestic grapes bywineries (top five varieties for red and white wine)
Muscat Bailey A
1,694t11.4%

Concord991t
6.6%
Campbell Early
936t
6.3%
Black Queen
325t
2.2%

Berr y skin of Koshu is grayish-pink and rather

Koshu
2,037t13.7%

Merlot
1,051t7.0%

thicker than European varieties. Koshu has mid-sized
berries, which accumulate slightly lower sugar thanNiagara1,659t11.1%

Total
14,910t

Chardonnay
925t
6.2%
Delaware834t
5.6%
Kerner344t
2.3%

Note : This is total amount of each variety received.
Source : National Tax Agency Japan (2023)

02

Koshu on pergolas (left), fully ripe Koshu (right)
Grapes are being cultivated on sunny slopes with good drainage.

European grapes. It is used for both wine and table.
As its name suggests, Yamanashi prefecture is them a i n p r o d u c t i o n a r e a o f K o s hu , b ut it i s a l s o
c u l t i v a t e d i n S h i m a n e p r e f e c t u r e , Ya m a g a t aprefecture and so on.

The Story ofJapan Wine

Some Koshu wines have a grapefruit-like citrus
aroma.

The Caucasus
regionKoshu

This characteristic aroma is derived from a groupof compounds called thiols; they are famous aroma

Vinifera

The Silk RoadDavidii
Source: Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI)

The route Koshu came to JapanThe origin of Koshu

compounds contained in Sauvignon Blanc wine. The
precursors of the thiols are also contained in Koshu
g r ap e s. A r om at ic t h iol s a r e r ele a se d f r om t heprecursors by yeast during fermentation. Conditions,such as harvest timing and yeast strains, to enhance
the citrus aroma were studied; a new type of Koshu
wine has been developed.

Although there were various hypotheses for theorigins of the Koshu, recent DNA analysis by Goto etal. in our institute has revealed that the Koshu genome
consists of 20 ‒ 30% of DNA from the East Asian wild

A new type of
Koshu wine

Fermentation

Citrusaroma

Koshu grapes

species (presumed to be Vitis davidii) and the remaining
DNA from V. vinifera. This result suggests that theancestor of Koshu was propagated from the westernpart of the Asian continent, the Caucasus via the Silk
Road to Japan, crossing with wild East Asian species.

Release byyeast enzyme
S

Characteristics of Koshu wine

Precursor
odorlessMany of Koshu wines are white wines with lightcolor, moderate to fresh acid and a gentle harmony ofa roma a nd taste. It is sa id t hat Koshu w i ne
particularly goes well with Japanese food. Once, thestandard Koshu wine was semi sweet. But, now it has
a wide range of tastes, from dry to sweet.
Now we can enjoy various types of Koshu wine. A
fresh and fruity type is a popular one. A crisp wine ismade from the lee-aging method. Rich ﬂavors can be
developed by barrel fermentation and aging. A goodstructured wine is made as ʻgrisʼ wine. Long-term
ag i ng develops cha racter ist ic color a nd f lavor.
Sparkling wines are also made.

HS
Aroma
components

Aroma
components
Citrusaroma

Selected
yeast

Winemaking and sulfite

Su l ﬁte is u sed i n ma ny w i ne s. It has been u sed si nce

ancient times, when it was generated by burning sulfur in thebarrels to keep wine quality.
There are two major roles of sulﬁte in winemaking:①Prevents oxidation of wine
②Inhibition of microbial contamination
Since sul ﬁte is a food addit ive, a nd is indicated as a n
antioxidant on the label. Currently, the maximum content of
sulﬁte in wine in Japan is 350mg /kg (the Food Sanitation
Act). But, according to the result of the National Survey on
S a fet y, Q u a l it y, L ab el l i ng a nd C omp onent s of A lc ohol
Beverages (National Tax Agency Japan (2016)), the averageamount in domestic wine including fruit wine is 80mg/kg. Itʼs
82mg/kg in white wine and 79mg/kg in red wine, which areconsiderably lower than the maximum content.
Appropriate amount of sulﬁte makes it possible to protect
w ine f rom deter iorat ion due to ox idat ion a nd m icrobial
contamination.
It is essent ial to use sou nd g rapes a nd to sa n it ize t hewinery equipment in order to minimize the amount of sulﬁteneeded. Eliminating excess oxygen (hence, reduced exposure
to the atmosphere) is also important. You may ﬁnd sulﬁte-free
w ines in super markets, for example, to meet consumerʼs

Various types of Koshu wine
The color tones reﬂect diﬀerences in viniﬁcation methods.

demands.

03

Grapes and wines
Muscat Bailey A

Mr. Zenbei Kawakami and the breeding of grapes

known as the Iwaimura Winemaking Company) was

grapes at Kitakata in Joetsu City,In 1877, the Dainihon Yamanashi Wine Company (alsoestablished to start full-ﬂedged winemaking in Japan. Twoyoung men were sent to France to acquire the knowledgeof v it icu lt u re a nd enolog y. I n 188 0, t he Japa nesegovernment established the Banshu Vineyard at Hyogo
prefecture and began cultivating European varieties as apart of its industry promotion policy.
However, the Vineyard suﬀered great damage fromtyphoons, and a phylloxela infestation was found (see page7); thus it was forced to close. In addition, at that time,
unskilled winemaking resulted in poor quality. Also, wine
was not to peopleʼs taste in the Meiji era (1868-1912).
During this diﬃcult time, a person arrived on the scene
who tackled winemaking head-on by investing his own
private property, inspired by the wish to "breed varieties ofgrapes suitable to the Japanese climate." This person was
Mr. Zenbei Kawakami. The Muscat Bailey A he bred hascome to be the most widely used red-wine grape in Japan.

Characteristics of Muscat Bailey A
Muscat Bailey A is a cross bet ween Bailey, an
A m e r ic a n hy b r id g r a p e w it h g o o d c u lt i v at io ncharacters, and Muscat Hamburg, a European tablegrape of the V. vinifera. Due to its good resistance todisease, large bunches, large berries, high yield, andgood ﬂavor, it is used not only for wine but also fort able. It i s cu lt ivate d nat ionw ide, i nclud i ng i n
Yamanashi, Yamagata and Hyogo prefectures.

Mr. Kawakami started growing

Niigata prefecture in 1890. This
was the Iwanohara Vineyard. He
wanted to cultivate grapes on theslopes of mountains that could not
be used for rice paddies and to
make his hometown that suﬀeredfrom heavy snow wealthy. While
conducting the diﬃcult businessof vine cultivation andwinemaking in Japan (with its
scant history in these ﬁelds), he

Museum of Zenbei
Kawakami(Kitakata
in Joetsu city)

focused on cross-breeding new grape varieties that aresuitable to Japanese climate. As a result of these eﬀorts,
he succeeded in breeding Muscat Bailey A in 1927.
Among the 22 excellent varieties selected from over
10,000 cross-breedings, Muscat Bailey A, Black Queen,
Red Millennium, and Rose Ciotat are still used today forwine making.
In addition, he also tried to improve wine-making
techniques such as a cellar cooling system using snow
stored from winter. He left great footprints in the historyof Japanese viticulture and winemaking. He summarized
the knowledge he gained in that process in his volume. In
1941, at the age of 73, Mr. Kawakami was given the Japan
Prize of Agricultural Science for his achievement of"breeding of valuable grape varieties by cross-breeding."

Characteristics of Muscat Bailey A wine
It is reported thatmedium-to-light bodied fruity
re d w i ne s a re m ade f rom
Muscat Bailey A because theextraction of tannin(astringent compound) from Red wine made fromt hei r se ed s i s re st r a i ned. Muscat Bailey A
Recently, however, well-structured Muscat Bailey A
wines matured in barrels are being produced.
Muscat Bailey A wines have a sweet strawberry-like
Muscat Bailey A
Green and purple berries are mixed in a bunchat the veraison stage.

aroma. This is due to furaneol, which is an aroma
c o m p o u nd c o nt a i n e d i n v a r i o u s f r u it s s u c h a s
strawberries, pineapples and raspberries as well as theskins and juice of Muscat Bailey A. It is known that theconcentration of furaneol increases rapidly during thelater stage of maturation.

04

The Story ofJapan Wine
Yamabudo (A wild grape)

Yamabudo (Vitis coignetiae) is a species of Asian wild

grape native to Japan. There is an account written
during the Meiji era(1868-1912) that wine was madefrom Yamabudo growing naturally on the ﬁelds andmountains. Yamabudo vines are dioecious. This meansthat male vines and female vines are needed to bear
fruit. Yamabudo has small berries with many seeds
a n d a g r e a t d e a l o f r e d p i g m e n t . H o w e v e r,
unexpectedly, they contain a not so large amount oftannin. Generally, this wine has a characteristic aroma
and high acidity suitable for long aging. In addition,
since Yamabudoʼs cultivation characteristics are
suitable to the Japanese climate, it is also used to breed
many varieties, such as Yama Sauvignon and Shokoshi.

Theannualaverage temperatureof Ikeda in Tokachi,
Hok k a ido i s ab out
6 C, which is much
lower t h a n t h at of
T r i e r, t h e c e n t r a lc it y o f M o s e l l e i n
Ger many (about

Vineyard in December

9 C). However, it is warm enough in the summer for
grapes to grow.
Grape cultivation began in Ikeda in 1960, when the
mayor at that time was inspired by wild grapes. But,
the cold winter was a big obstacle. In this area, only alittle snow falls, and vines die because of frozen dry
weather. They set about the hard work of covering thevines with soil in the winter and digging them out int he spr ing. At t he same t ime, t hey succeeded inselecting a good mutant Kiyomi, from Seibel 13053.
Beside breeding grapes, they also conducted research
i nto w i nem a k i ng te ch n ique s s u it able for t he secold-tolerant grapes. Sparkling rosé wine is also madefrom Kiyomi through traditional methods.
Today, new varieties, Kiyomai and Yamasachi, arebred t h roug h crossi ng K iyom i a nd w i ld g rape s.

Yamabudo

Wine grapes bred in Japan

Since the increase of wine making in the 1950s,

Medium-bodied red wine with fairy good acidity ismade from these varieties. Yamasachi is cold resistantand it does not need to be buried in winter. They arestill continuing their eﬀorts to develop new varieties.

some wine companies, universities, public researchlaboratories, etc., have experimented with breeding
wine grapes, chieﬂy crossing European and Japanesegrapes. To date, many varieties have been developed;
Riesling Rion, Riesling Forte, Shinano Riesling, Mond
Briller for white wine, and Suntory Noir, Kai Noir,
Yama Sauvignon, Bijou Noir, Harmo Noir, Kadaino
R-1 for red wine. The breeding of cold-hardy grapes
has continued in Hokkaido, which is close to thenorthern limit of grape cultivation.

Kiyomai

Yamasachi

Breeding new varieties and cultivating seedlings05

Grapes and wines
European varieties

Eu rope is t he homela nd of v it icult u re a nd w ine

making, and there are thousands of varieties. In the
traditional wine regions, a speciﬁc wine grape variety
for any speciﬁc district in the Geographical Indication
system has already been stipulated; however, what iscalled, some “international” varieties, e.g., Cabernet
Sauv ignon and Merlot for red w ines, Chardonnay,

are now producing excellent wines in the United States,
Australia, Chile, South Africa, and elsewhere. In Japan,
these varieties are cultivated in various places, mainly in
Nagano and Yamagata prefectures. Some of their wines
have a quality comparable with the world's ﬁne wines.
White wines with a wide range of aromas and rich
ﬂavors are made from Chardonnay, and full bodied redwines, rich in aroma, are made from Merlot.

Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc for white, tend to spread.
On the other hand, there are movements to reevaluatet he t rad it iona l loc a lvarieties as well.
As mentioned above,
i n ra i ny Japa n, t hecultivation ofEuropean varieties isvery diﬃcult. However,as impor ted w ines
became more familiar

Covering the canopy withplastic sheet

in the country, momentum for trying the diﬃcult task ofcultivating European wine varieties in Japan gained
steam. The varieties suitable for Japan were selectedfrom mainly French, German and Austrian ones. With
improvements of viticulture and winemaking skills, thequality of wines has improved dramatically.
The major European grapes, with more than 20 ha ofc u l t i v a t i o n , i n c l u d e C h a r d o n n a y, K e r n e r,
Mü l ler -T hu r gau for wh ite, a nd Merlot , C ab er net
Sauvignon and Zweigeltrebe for red. (Source: Ministryof Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (2015)). However,there are many wineries each of which has more than
10 0 ha of v i neya rd i n major w i ne cou nt r ies. It is
anticipated that the cultivation of wine grapes in Japan
will increase in the future.

Merlot(On modiﬁed pergolas with paper umbrellas,
photo provided by the Nagano Wine Association)

Kerner and Zweigeltrebe

Kerner is a German variety used to make whitewine with a Muscat-like fruity aroma and refreshingacid it y. Zweigelt reb e i s bred a nd cu lt ivated i nAustr ia, and is used to make a red w ine w ith an
elegant aroma and medium body. In Japan, morethan 90% of these varieties are grown in Hokkaido.
High-quality wines are produced from Ker ner,
Zweigeltrebe, Müller-Thurgau and others in Hokkaido,
but these varieties are diﬃcult to cultivate in theChardonnay and Merlot

main island of Japan: Honshu.

Chardonnay for whitewine and Merlot for red
are major Europeanv a r i e t i e s c u lt i v ate d i n
Japa n. T hey a re h ig h ly
regarded around theworld and are adaptableto various environments.

Chardonnay

Consequently, apart from their original place, Burgundy
and Bordeaux, respectively, in France, these varieties

06

KernerZweigeltrebe

The Story ofJapan Wine

Other European varieties

Although other European grape varieties are notgrown extensively in Japan, we will review those thathave recently begun to be cultivated.
Sauvignon Blanc is a French white variety grown
all over the world since the 1970s. It has a uniquearoma, a combination of herbs and grapefruits, witha ref reshing acidit y. It ﬁts t he taste of Japanesepeople and harmonizes well with Japanese foods.
Petit Verdot, a red-wine variety with lots of tannin,
produces a deeply colored and spicy wine. Thatʼswhy, in Bordeaux, it is often used to add color andstructure to a blend. In Japan, it is used not only inblends with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, but also
for varietal wine. It is one of the most noteworthy
European varieties in Japan.

A merican varieties

In Nor t h A mer ica, w ild grape species such as

V. labrusca were crossed with European varieties.
These American grapes were introduced to Japan in
the Meiji era(1868-1912) and rooted in various places.
Many of these varieties have a characteristic sweet
aroma, called the “foxy ﬂavor,” which is found in wine
made from American varieties. Because this is a ﬂavor
not found in European grapes, it is not appreciated inEurope, but it is rather familiar to Japanese people.
The American varieties, i.e., Niagara and Delaware forwhite wine, and Concord and Campbell Early for red
wine, are also used as table grapes. These grapes arecu lt ivated a nd used for w i ne ma k i ng i n t henortheastern United States and Canada as well.
Many of these wines are sweet which is well-matchedwith their sweet aroma. However, various types of

S eibel varieties

wine, e.g., a moderate aroma type, a fresh type madeSeibel varieties were bred by Albert Seibel in France

through crossing V. vinifera and American species, aiming tofrom early harvested fruits, rosé wine, and sparklingwine are also made.

breed resistant varieties to disease and phylloxera. They canbe found in vineyards in the northeastern United States,
Canada and elsewhere. In Japan, varieties such as Seibel
9110 and Seibel 5279 (both for white wine) and Seibel 13053(for red wine) are mainly cultivated in northern Japan.
DelawareCampbell Early

Breeding of disease-resistant varieties

Early disease-resistant varieties developed in Europe werequickly used practically for phylloxera and disease control.
However quality evaluations of these var ieties were poor,
which resulted in recognition that “disease-resistant varieties

Seibel 9110 (Verdelet)

Seibel 13053

The struggle against phylloxera
Phylloxera is an insect of America origin. During the 1860s
this insect was brought from the US to Europe with American
grape saplings. After that, its infestation expanded all over
Europe, and grapes were in grave danger of extinction.

are not good enough.”
However, this did not stop the further breeding of resistantvar ieties. Regent, a red-w ine var iet y bred in Ger many, isresistant to downy mildew, powdery mildew and gray mold,and contains genes from wild species other than V. vinifera. It
does not have a foxy ﬂavor. Regent is authorized for qualiﬁed
wine in Germany, and it is now planted there in over 2,000 ha.
Regent was crossed in 1967, test cultivation started in 1985,

After the devastating blows by phylloxera, it was found thata nd c om me r cia l c u lt ivat ion b e ga n i n 19 9 6. It i s a ve r ysome A mer ic a n specie s (Vit is r ipar ia , Vit is r upe st r is, Vit islong-term eﬀort. Nowadays, eﬃcient evaluation methods ofberlandieri, etc.) were resista nt to phylloxera. T hus, t wo

disease resistance have been developed using DNA testing.

methods were tried to overcome the phylloxera devastation.
One was to breed resistant varieties as mentioned above. The
other was to use the American species as rootstocks upon
wh ich t he suscept ible Eu ropea n va r iet ies were g ra f ted.
Today, the rootstock has been adopted almost all over theworld, since this method does not signiﬁcantly change thequality of wine.

Disease-resistant varieties make it possible to reduce theamount of agricultural chemicals sprayed during cultivation.
T h is means t hat t hese var iet ies are f r iendly for bot h t henatural environment and the growers. Thus, the developmento f d i s e a s e - r e s i s t a nt va r ie t ie s i s b e i n g t ac k le d i n m a ny
countries, such as the United States, France, Switzerland andelsewhere.

07

What is Japan Wine?
In October 2015, the National Tax Agency JapanI n add it ion, va r ious ot her cr iter ia have been

(NTA) deﬁned "Japan Wine" as "Wine made in Japanestablished, as shown on the right-hand page. Pleasefrom only domestic grapes."u s e t h i s i n for m at io n a s a r e fe r e nc e w he n yo u

C o n v e n t i o n a l l y, t h e w o r d " d o m e s t i c w i n e "commonly refers to not only wine that is made fromdomestic grapes but also wine made in Japan fromimported concentrated juice or imported wine. This
made it diﬃcult for consumers to distinguish truly
domestic wines that were only made from Japanesegrape. Therefore, the NTA established “Standard forWine Production Process and Quality Indication” inorder to enable consumers to select products thatt hey want and to promote w ine made only f rom
domestic grapes.
According to the standard, as can be seen in theﬁgure below, wines available in Japanese markets areclassiﬁed into the following three categories: ①Japan
Wine, ②Domestically manufactured wine, ③Imported
wine. Following the NTA classiﬁcation, only wine
made exclusively from domestic grapes can be called
and labelled "Japan Wine." In addition, only “Japan
Wine” has right to show name of origin, variety ofgrapes, and harvested year on the front label.

purchase wine in Japan.

Ordeals in French vineyards and the EU wine law

France is a famous producer of w ine. However, in t hel ate r h a l f o f t h e n i n e te e n t h c e n t u r y, w h e n t h e r e w a s
i n s u ﬃ c ie nt w i ne obt a i n able due to phyl loxe r a , dow ny
m i l d e w, p o w d e r y m i l d e w a n d o t h e r d i s e a s e s , “ w i n eforger ies” were ra mpa nt. For exa mple, water a nd suga rwere added to grape pomace and fermented to make fakew ine. Falsely adver t ised w ine labeled a fa mous
wine-growing region. In reaction, a system of appellation oforigin and rules of wine labeling was established in order toprotect t he good producers a nd t he consu mers. A st r ict
deﬁnition of “wine” was issued. This system provided thebasic framework for the later "wine law" that stipulates wine
production methods and product indications.
T h is system has been ex tended to ot her Eu ropea ncountries, and has led to the current EU wine law. In the EU,
in addition to the rules governing geographical indications
such as “Champagne” and “Sherry,” words like “Château”
and “Sur Lie” are also oﬃcially designated as traditional
ex pressions. T hese indications are only per mitted whencertain requirements, such as the production area and the
manufacturing method, are met by the products.

②Domestically manufactured wine

Wine using
overseas ingredients①Japan Wine
Wine made in Japan exclusively
from domestic grapes⇒ The label can display the grape

grown location and the variety, etc.

1. Should display
・the concentrated juice used・the imported wine usedon the front label.
2. Cannot display the location,③Imported
wine
Bottled wine

Overseas
ingredients
Concentrated
juice

grape variety, etc. on thefront label.

Bulk wine①Japan Wine: Wine manufactured within Japan, using domestic grapes exclusively②Domestically manufactured wine: Wine and sweet wine manufactured within Japan, including Japan Wine
③Imported wine: Wine and sweet wine imported from abroad
Source: National Tax Agency Japan

08

The Story ofJapan Wine

Japan Wine indications
Front label
Only Japan Wine can have labels that display the geographic location,
grape variety, and year of grape harvest.
Geographical location○ Location of wine production⇒If the location of harvesting the grape (over 85% of usage) and location of fermentation is
located within the region of the indicated location.
○ Location of harvesting grape⇒If the location of harvesting the grape (over 85% of usage) is located within the region of
the indicated location.
○ Location of fermentation⇒If the location of fermentation is located within the region of the indicated location.
Grape variety○ If over 85% of indicated grape variety is used
（In case multiple varieties are used, the varieties shall be displayed in order of usage weight)

Year of grape harvest○ If over 85% of grape harvested in the indicated year is used
【Example of a front and back label of Japan Wine】
日本ワイン

Japan Wine

Japan Wine

日 本ワイ ン

原材料名 ： ぶ ど う （日本 産）/酸化 防止 剤 （亜硫酸塩）
Geographical location

広島ワイン

Grape variety
Year of grape harvest

シャルドネ
2018
酒類総研株式会社

Winemaker s name

製造

果 実酒

Wine

製造者 ： 酒 類総研株 式会社
製造場 所在 地 ： 広島県 東広島市 鏡山 3 - 7 - 1
内容量 ： 720ml
ア ルコー ル分 ： 12％

Ingredientsand its placeof origin
Winemaker s
nameLocation ofwineryVolumeAlcohol content

Back label○The following items must be displayed

・Items speciﬁed by law must be displayed1)Winemaker s name, 2)Location of winery, 3)Volume, 4)Alcohol content

・Items required for consumer protection

1)Japan Wine, 2)Ingredients and its place of origin

09

The characteristics ofmajor wine-producing areas in JapanThe grape variety has the greatest inﬂuence on thequality of a wine; moreover, the natural environment,
including the soil, temperature, sunshine hours andrainfall in t he grape grow ing areas also aﬀect w ine
quality. The strategies of the grapes growers and the wine
makers also have a large inﬂuence on the quality.The

Hokkaido
These nor thern islands feature the wines made from
German and Austrian varieties (Kerner, Zweigeltrebe,
Müller-Thurgau, etc.) due to its cool climate.
Also, wines are made from the grape varieties of Seibel,
American, cold-resistant wild grapes, and crossbreeds ofthose. New wineries are on the rise and some of them aretrying to grow Pinot Noir, although it is a diﬃcult variety
to grow.

territory of Japan extends over a long span of latitude andhas a complex topography. Various kinds of grapes can beCampbell
Early
475t
14.4%

and are cultivated there, and wines of special charactercan be made from these diverse varieties.

Niagara924t
27.9%

Zweigeltrebe
206t
6.2%

We will now introduce the characteristics of the majorwine-producing areas in Japan.

Kerner319t
9.6%

Yamagata prefecture
In the inland part of the prefecture, there are many vineyardsof wine grapes and wineries. This location is suitable forgrowing fruit trees that prefer an inland climate. Muscat Bailey
A, Delaware, and Niagara, as well as Chardonnay are major
grape varieties for wine there.

MuscatBailey A
284t
22.1%

Delaware
380t
29.6%

Merlot74t
5.8%

Niagara125t
9.8%

Nagano prefecture
Although this is the main production area ofcold-resistant American varieties (Concord and Niagara),
cultivation and winemaking of Merlot and Chardonnay
are increasing, taking advantage of its climate with its
low rainfall and large daily temperature diﬀerences. It ischaracteristic that the percentage of red-wine varieties ishigh.
In addition to leading and long-established wineries,
boutique wineries are springing up, one after another.

Niagara495t
13.6%
Concord991t
27.1%

Chardonnay
64t
5%

Yamanashi prefectureThis prefecture is the most major viticulture district
including table grapes, and has therefore the largest
number of wineries in Japan. Koshu and Muscat Bailey A
are major varieties, and with the third variety as Delaware.
In addition, they also make wine from European varieties
such as Merlot, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Sauvignon.
Wine tourism is planned for visitors to look aroundvineyards and wineries.

Chardonnay
329t
9%MuscatBailey A
913t
23.3%

Merlot612t
16.8%

Source : National Tax Agency Japan (2023)

10

Koshu
1,895t48.4%

Merlot
94t
2.4%

Dela
ware
234t
6%

The Story ofJapan Wine
The Geographical Indication

G e og r aph ic a l I nd ic at ion (GI ) i s a s y stem wh ich

promotes t he appropr iate usage of t he name of t hegeographical origin, which is the common property of
the area. This means that alcoholic beverages, can claim
exclusive use of the name of the place where it was made.
W hen a GI is designated to alcoholic beverages, it
indicates not only that this is from the correct production
area, but also the quality is suﬃcient to meet certain
criteria.
There are many famous GIs for wine, for example,"Champagne," "Chianti," and "Rioja." In Japan as of 2023,
G I r e g i o n s d e s i g n ate d to w i n e a r e " Ya m a n a s h i ",cannot contain any grapes except the designatedvarieties.

The Japan Wine Competition (JWC)

J WC has been held by J WC Executive Committee since2003 and is supported by the Ministry of Foreign Aﬀairs ofJapan, the National Tax Agency Japan, the National Research
I n s t it ute o f B r e w i n g , a nd ot h e r b o d ie s . It i s a i m e d at
improving the quality and peopleʼs awareness of Japan Wine,
as well as elevating the image of each production area andthe character and status of Japan Wine through nationwide
competition.
At J WC, wines were evaluated in 12 categories, such as"European red varieties," "Koshu," "extremely sweet," and"sparkling." Those wines that satisﬁed certain criteria in eachcategory won awards.

"Hokkaido", "Yamagata", "Osaka" and "Nagano".
The wines that meet production standards can display"GI Yamanashi" or similar on their labels.

Indication standards concerning
geographical indications

The GIs cannot be used when: ①The wine is not

actually produced within the areas, ②The wine does
not meet the speciﬁed production standards and thequality requirements.
Also, when this term is used in translation, and evenw it h ex pressions such as " k i nd," " t y pe," "st yle,""imitation," etc., it cannot be used. For example, wecannot display something like "Yamanashi style" or"Yamanashi type" on wines produced outside the
Yamanashi prefecture. Furthermore, even when a Japan
Wine has been produced in Yamanashi prefecture, itcannot be labeled "GI Yamanashi" if it does not meet thede ﬁ ne d pr o duct ion st a nda rd s. For e x a mple, it

Geographical Indications Map

Hokkaido
Yamagata… WineYamanashi

Osaka

Nagano11

Th Science on wine
Red-wine grapes and flavonoid compounds

Compatibility of wines and fish dishes

ast r ingent compou nd (tan n in) are involved in aan unpleasant ﬁshy odor

group of t he poly phenols called ﬂavonoid

w h e n yo u d r a n k w i n ecompounds. They are very important components

while eating ﬁsh? Fishyof red-w ine grapes, and are being researched inodors, metallic smells,various aspects at our institute as well.

bitter ness, etc. were

Bot h t he pig ment (a nt hocya n i n) a nd t he

the pigment compound of the skin, is accumulated

and seafood dishes were

Polyunsaturated
fatty acids (EPA/DHA)

wine

sen se d when re d w i newine

It is well known that the amount of anthocyanin,

SulﬁteLipid peroxide

Iron ions(Fe 2+)

Alkoxy radical

as grapes ripen and is increased as grapes receive

combined. This was

sunlig ht. However, our research has discovered

once thought to be duet hat h ig h temperat u res i n h ibit sy nt hesis of

to ta n n i n conta i ned i nanthocyanin at gene transcription level and evenr e d w i n e . H o w e v e r, a

promote the decomposition of already-synthesized

similar phenomenon

ant hocyan in. It has also been showed t hat

occurs even with white

appropriate dry condition around the start of color

wine that does not contain tannin. Thus, what does

development enhances their coloring.

c a u s e t h i s p h e n o m e n o n? R e c e n t l y, a J a p a n e s e

On t he ot her ha nd, ta n n i n accu mu late s f rom

Carbonyl compounds(aldehydes, ketones, etc.)
bitterness

metallic
smellsﬁshy
odors

research group published an interesting report.

ﬂowering to the beginning of maturation. Our study

Fish contain a lot of unsaturated fatty acids, suchshowed that light exposure during this period has a

as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic

preferable inﬂuence on its organoleptic characters,acid (DHA). These substances are prone to oxidatione.g., smoothness and ﬁneness, through(deter iorat ion) du r i ng food proce ssi ng a nd

modiﬁcation of tannin composition.

preservation, and lipid peroxide is produced. WhenD u r i ng re d-w i ne fer ment at ion, t he ﬂ avonoidiron ions in t he w ine act as a catalyst upon t hese

compounds are extracted from the skin and seeds

products, f u r t her chem ical changes occur andof crushed berries. Keeping the temperature lower

volat i le c a rbonyl compou nd s a re for med. T he sefor 2 to 3 days at the early stage of fermentation

pr o duct s c au s e t he ﬁ shy s me l l a nd bit te r t a ste.

promotes the extraction of anthocyanin, but that ofSimilarly, our institute discovered that this reaction

ta n n i n f rom t he seeds is suppressed. T hus, t heis promoted by sulﬁte in wine.

control of fer mentation temperature enables thechange of the ﬂavonoid composition of wine.
We h o p e t h e s e r e s u lt s c o nt r i b u te to t h eimprovement of the quality of Japan Wine.

Veraison

It is interesting that oil (that inhibits the contact
bet ween iron a nd ox idized fatt y acid) a nd lemon(c it r i c a c i d o f w h i c h c h e l a te s i r o n ) r e d u c e t h egeneration of ﬁshy ﬂavor, like meunière!

Maturity

National ResearchInstitute of Brewing

Proanthocyanidin(tannin)
Anthocyanin

Flowering

The pattern of ﬂavonoid accumulationin grape skins

12

Have you ever smelled

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January 2024