From Vineyard to Glass – Through the Eyes of a Winemaker

While it seems to be mentioned somewhat less frequently these days, there is a persistent claim that antioxidants contained in wine—specifically additives called sulfites or sulfurous acid—are the cause of headaches that occur when drinking wine. This the …

I would like to introduce the content of a fascinating article published in the German wine magazine “der deutsche Weinbau.” Image or Sensation? The title of this article is “Image vs. Sensorik.” If we translate this somewhat freely, it becomes “Image or …

This article focuses on the compounds extracted from wooden barrels during wine aging and their effects on wine. Discussions of barrel aging are often reduced to the notion of “oak aroma,” with an emphasis on aromatic attributes alone. In practice, howeve …

When storing wine, there’s probably one question that everyone has wondered about at least once: how should the bottle be positioned? Should wine bottles be stored horizontally, or should they not be stored vertically? A quick search reveals many explanat …

The terms “sulfur dioxide” or “sulfites” have become something of a dreaded unhealthy buzzword in Japan’s wine industry today, treated with the same revulsion as a venomous snake. Meanwhile, sulfur dioxide-free wines—those made without adding these antiox …

You tasted a white wine at a winery or wine shop and liked it enough to purchase it. However, you felt it was still a little early for drinking, so you decided to let it rest a bit longer in your home cellar. Six months later, at the dinner table. You kne …

Cabernet Blanc, Cabernet Jura, Muscaris, Souvignier Gris. Do these varietal names sound familiar to you? From the sound of “Cabernet~”, “Musca~”, and “Souvi~”, many of you may have guessed that these are wine grape varieties. Indeed, these are all names o …

On September 12th, the winery where I work harvested grapes for the first time in the 2019 season. While grape growth wasn’t as abnormally accelerated as in 2018, when the harvest came nearly a month earlier than usual, 2019 still marked the beginning of …

Pruning is one of the most critical operations carried out in vineyards. In viticulture, pruning refers to removing unnecessary shoots and canes that have grown over the season, leaving only those required for the coming production cycle. This work is per …

There is one disease that grape growers particularly fear during rainy years: downy mildew. Whether dealing with wine grapes or any other cultivated plants, the battle against diseases is unavoidable. Vineyards encounter various diseases, but the most pro …

In recent years, the term “biodynamic” or “biodynamic agriculture” has rapidly gained mainstream recognition. This is particularly true in the wine industry, where many globally acclaimed producers have adopted this approach, and you may have encountered …

Climate change and global warming are reshaping how wine is made. Winters have grown shorter and warmer, and budbreak now arrives earlier in the season. As a result, damage from late frost and hail has become more widespread. Shifts in rainfall patterns i …

Global temperatures are rising due to climate change, accelerating the growth of wine grapes accordingly. Warmer winters have caused grape budbreak to occur earlier, and through increasingly hot summers, we can now harvest grapes that are more mature than …

Wine and oxidation are a notoriously incompatible combination. Consider a familiar scenario: you open a bottle of wine that tastes excellent, but you cannot finish it in one sitting. You reseal the bottle and store it in the refrigerator, intending to dri …

Whenever I occasionally post about “natural wine” on X (formerly Twitter), those posts tend to be shared relatively widely for my account size. This simply indicates how many people react to this particular keyword. In recent years, especially in Japan, t …

“Wine is made from grapes alone.” This is what most people believe, yet contrary to this assumption, some wine back labels include listings of additives. There are several types of additives, with antioxidants and stabilizers being among the most well-kno …

Extraction is a crucial operation in winemaking, particularly for red wines. It affects every aspect of wine, from color intensity to aging potential. In winemaking, extraction refers to the transfer of compounds contained in grape skins and seeds into th …

Attention is returning to wines that are fermented and aged in concrete vessels. Concrete is a building material very familiar to modern people. While concrete is strongly associated with building exteriors and walls, in winemaking it serves as a material …

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-SccwUyehI The term “natural wine” remains a perpetual source of heated debate among wine enthusiasts. This phrase has become so ubiquitous that it jumps out at us from Tokyo’s streets in combinations like “natural wine an …

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3zcrR39d8Q In recent years, the concept of “diversity” has become a frequent topic of discussion within the wine industry. However, this diversity does not merely refer to variations within traditional frameworks such as d …

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9hVTlhyZDc Among wine enthusiasts, the belief that “good vineyards” produce quality wines is widely accepted. Wines from vineyards with classifications such as Grand Cru or Premier Cru are often perceived as “distinctly di …