On Tuesday, July 18, a gathering celebrating award-winning wines from the Decanter World Wine Awards 2023 was held at Cafe "HARBOR" on the 11th floor of the Suntory Tamachi Office.
This article reports on the details of the day's event.
About the Award-Winning Wines
"SUNTORY FROM FARM" is a Japanese wine brand that has garnered tremendous support from Japanese wine fans.
Three of the brand's Koshu wines achieved a remarkable feat at the globally prestigious Decanter World Wine Awards 2023.
- "SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi no Oka Koshu 2021" Platinum Award
- "SUNTORY FROM FARM Wine no Mirai Tateshina-machi Koshu Cool-Climate Grown 2021" Gold Award
- "SUNTORY FROM FARM Koshu Nihon no Shiro 2020" Silver Award
On the day of the event, centered around these wines, there were explanations of Suntory's Japanese wine products and their commitment to grape growing, alongside comparative tastings of Koshu wines and finger food pairings.
Commitment to Koshu
Koshu, the award-winning wine at the "Decanter World Wine Awards 2023."
Taking the stage, Hiroshi Miyashita, General Manager of the Winery Wine Business Department at Suntory Wine Company, expressed his delight that each of the three bottles had received recognition, fulfilling the three roles Suntory aims for with Koshu wine: "aiming for world-class quality," "expanding the potential of wine regions," and "expanding the potential of wine regions."
In addition, Kohei Oyama, Chief Viticulturist at Suntory Tomi no Oka Winery, explained the dedication behind their Koshu winemaking on the day.
It was intriguing to hear about the characteristics of Koshu terroirs within Yamanashi Prefecture for Suntory, especially the practice of planting Koshu by strain and parcel in the Minami-Alps vineyard, one of their directly managed vineyards, to obtain distinctive base wines and distribute workloads.
Furthermore, he discussed the characteristics, challenges, and achievements of grape growing in Tateshina Town, Nagano Prefecture, which was initiated to bring out Koshu's appeal distinct from Yamanashi.
According to materials from the Winery Association's Koshu Seminar in April 2023, the town is cooler than Tsuruoka City in Yamagata Prefecture, allowing grapes to be harvested while retaining their acidity even when fully ripe.
As experienced during the tasting of "SUNTORY FROM FARM Wine no Mirai Tateshina-machi Koshu Cool-Climate Grown 2021," the rich citrus notes and crisp, well-defined acidity were truly magnificent.
Then, during the explanation of Koshu from Tomi no Oka Winery—which can be called the flagship of "SUNTORY FROM FARM"—the discussion turned to the history of Koshu cultivation at Tomi no Oka Winery and the challenge of striving for top-quality Koshu.
While Mr. Oyama remarked that "at Tomi no Oka, we have simply continued focusing only on what is essential," one could clearly sense the attitude of discovering Koshu's potential through years of painstaking effort, such as adopting parcel-specific flavor strategies with different training systems and putting new initiatives into practice across pergola and trellis systems.
Comparative Tasting of Koshu!
Six types of wines were prepared for tasting on the day of the event.
- "SUNTORY FROM FARM Koshu Nihon no Shiro 2020" "SUNTORY FROM FARM Wine no Mirai Tateshina-machi Koshu Cool-Climate Grown 2021" "SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi no Oka Koshu 2019" "SUNTORY FROM FARM Wine no Mirai Tomi no Oka Winery Koshu Young Vines Grown 2020" "SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi no Oka Koshu 2021" "SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi no Oka Petit Verdot 2020"
Every Koshu showed distinct character and was wonderful, but personally, I was astonished by the high quality of "SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi no Oka Koshu 2021."
Amid faint aromas of Japanese citrus, green apple, and floral white flowers, it had a round, mellow mouthfeel, sharp acidity, a pleasant finish, and felt like an overall magnificent, concentrated wine.
In addition, Petit Verdot is another variety Mr. Oyama is putting effort into alongside Koshu.
The elegant and spicy taste of the 100% Petit Verdot wine, "SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi no Oka Petit Verdot 2020," was also delightful.
Making Koshu a Solid Brand the World Can Admire
Mr. Oyama stated that pursuing terroir is paramount when aiming for the world stage, and that understanding terroir through human completion and intuition, not just through numerical data, is also essential.
Going forward, Suntory aims to establish Koshu as a grape variety and brand that the world can admire, further expanding its value to revitalize Japanese wine.
Koshu, Japan's representative indigenous variety.
One cannot help but look forward to seeing how it will perform on the world stage from here on.
Reference
https://www.suntory.co.jp/wine/nihon/