Star Wine List is a wine information platform based in Stockholm, Sweden.
Its website and app focus on wine lists and introduce outstanding wine bars and wine restaurants around the world.
Along with information about each establishment, the actual wine lists are also published.
The curated selections include many Michelin-starred restaurants, but also small natural-wine bars, excellent bistros, and other distinctive venues.
What all of these establishments have in common is that their wine lists are unmistakably “made for wine lovers.”
About Star Wine List of the Year Japan 2025
So what is “Star Wine List of the Year Japan 2025,” organized by Star Wine List?
There are many competitions related to wine, but this one judges the wine lists themselves. The organizers describe it as an award celebrating “the world’s finest wine lists.”
On April 15, Star Wine List made its first launch in Japan and held the Star Wine List of the Year Japan 2025 awards ceremony on a stage at ProWine Tokyo.
We spoke with Star Wine List founder Krister Bengtsson about the platform.
Open on youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/embed/FdKBeuKPaoU
Scenes from the Star Wine List of the Year Japan 2025 Awards
The jury was chaired by Paz Levinson and Stephen Wong MW, and the judges reportedly engaged in lively discussion throughout the international awards tour. Gold Stars were presented in ten categories including Best Long List, Short List, and Best By the Glass List. Among them was a newly created category: Best Japanese Wine List.
Regarding judging for the Best Japanese Wine List, Star Wine List writer Rachel Fellows reported the following, offering a glimpse of how sommeliers around the world view the appeal and raison d’être of Japanese wine:
“The judges had a lively discussion about the role that vinifera and hybrid varieties will play in the future of excellent Japanese wines and wine lists. This is a discussion unlike those seen elsewhere. The maturity and deep understanding of Japanese wine is clearly demonstrated in small- and medium-sized wine lists. These lists skillfully manage carefully curated smaller collections, setting them apart from the large, minimally curated collections found in other parts of the world.”
Sommelier Toru Takamatsu MS and Reeze Choi, Star Wine List’s Hong Kong ambassador, were among the judges who attended the Tokyo awards ceremony.
Two restaurants won Gold Stars in the Best Japanese Wine List category. The judges’ comments make clear just how highly both lists were regarded.
⭐️ Chi-Fu, Osaka
“A wonderful selection from promising, quality-driven Japanese producers, together with several benchmark classic wines.” — Toru Takamatsu
⭐️ Shimanouchi Fujimaru Winery, Osaka
“An extraordinarily diverse Japanese wine list covering wines from nearly every prefecture.
Alongside high-quality, well-known international varieties, there is a wealth of hybrids, American varieties, and local grapes, creating a comprehensive expression of Japan’s wine culture and landscape. It is truly a bible of Japanese wine!” — Reeze Choi
Here are interviews with the two winners.
Open on youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/embed/MKH8fnoNSns?si=J52x-77NVzhlrqqd
For the other winners, visit the official Star Wine List website.
Craft Wine Shop Becomes National Partner
Craft Wine Shop (CWS), the Japanese-wine specialist e-commerce site operated by CruX Co., Ltd., supported the first Japan launch and awards ceremony as a national partner.
At the booth set up at the venue, a selection of Japanese wines chosen by the CWS store manager gave guests from around the world an opportunity to discover the quality of Japanese wine.
During the awards ceremony, guests were also introduced to Japanese wine and CWS. The two Gold Star winners in the Best Japanese Wine List category received catalog gifts from Yuukan Arimoto, representative of CruX Co., Ltd., enabling them to enjoy Japanese wines selected by CWS.
Open on youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/embed/GEiqCCiliBA
Star Wine List is now attracting attention from wine-industry professionals and wine lovers around the world.
The rapidly growing number of international visitors to Japan also use Star Wine List to find restaurants and bars where they can enjoy good wine.
And of course, when we travel overseas ourselves, the service can help us discover excellent wine.
Why not check it out?
Official Star Wine List