The 11th Edition of the "Hachioji Wine Festival" (formerly Saint-Vincent Hachioji) Was Held
On May 14, 2023, the 11th edition of the "Hachioji Wine Festival" (formerly Saint-Vincent Hachioji) took place in Hachioji City.
(There was also a spin-off event in February called Farm Saint-Vincent. Click here for the article on the spin-off event!)
The "Hachioji Wine Festival" is a wine festival organized by Hachioji volunteers where you can sip wine and savor specialty dishes prepared by each establishment
while touring restaurants, bars, and sightseeing spots!
Participants can enjoy one 40cc tasting pour per participating venue, allowing them to sample a wide variety of wines matching the number of participating venues.
It is a wonderful event where you can also purchase special wines and wine pairings for an additional fee.
Over 30 popular restaurants and bars participated, along with the Koyasu Shrine venue located near Hachioji Station.
Incredibly, this was the 11th time the festival was held, an event with a miraculous record of never having had rain before.
The weather held up in the first half, but after that, unfortunately, it began raining on and off.
Even so, the power of selling out all 1,300 advance tickets was formidable, and the city was filled with smiling faces, wine glass in hand.
Following February's Farm Saint-Vincent, I was once again responsible for curating the Japanese wine lineup and arranging visits from winery guests.
At Koyasu Shrine, we welcomed Mr. Shibuya from Domaine Hide, Mr. Yamada from Sanyo Wine, and Mr. Muraoka from Chateau Katsunuma.
(Yamanashi's famous shop OASIS was also at Koyasu Shrine!)
We also had Mr. Kukimoto from Shirayuri Winery explain and serve wine at Oysterbar W, and Mr. Shiraishi from Iwasaki Jozo do the same at Sumibiyaki Rakuza.
In addition, Mr. Baba of Tokoname winery The Neighborhood in Aichi Prefecture visited Brasserie BASEL, while Ms. Hosaka of Domaine Kyoko Hosaka Preparatory Office visited the Akasaka Parking Lot venue!
With Bistro Panda pouring Japanese wines selected by Miss Wine Kana-chan and Wagaya offering Casablanca from Shion Winery, among other features,
it turned out to be an event with a very strong "Japanese wine flair."
The organizer, Mr. Watanabe, passionately shared: "Hachioji has a sophisticated food culture, and being close to Yamanashi, there is also high potential demand for wine. If the phrase 'A city where you can enjoy Japanese wine' takes root, visitors from outside will increase and the city will flourish as well."
I titled this an infiltration report, but truth be told, I spent almost the entire time at Koyasu Shrine m(__)m
For details, please check the Hachioji Wine Festival Facebook page.
Please be sure to join this wonderful event next time—or for the first time next time!
Masafumi Nishiura
NIHON WINE.JP ★ Chief Coordinator ★
Vin Japonais ★ Special Advisor ★
Executive Partner of CruX Co., Ltd., operator of this site