Yamanashi
山梨県 甲州市
In May 1890, founder Jisaku Omura built a small winery in the garden of his home.
Since then, four generations of the family have followed.
With the joy of helping as many people as possible discover genuine deliciousness,
they have steadily devoted themselves to winemaking alone.
While cultivating traditional Koshu and European varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Chardonnay,
they have continued experimenting in both vineyard and cellar in pursuit of “Japanese wine we can proudly present to the world.”
See the Marufuji Budoshu special feature here.
Katsunuma is located in Koshu City, Yamanashi Prefecture.
Situated at the eastern edge of the Kofu Basin, it is about an hour and a half by train from Tokyo.
At the foot of Mount Fuji and surrounded by green mountains, the area is blessed with abundant natural beauty.
Various fruits have been cultivated here for centuries, and today Katsunuma is known as one of Japan's leading regions for grapes and wine.
Koshu, now increasingly recognized around the world, is Japan's most important indigenous grape variety.
It is believed to have traveled from the Caucasus region of Central Asia along the Silk Road to China, and then across the sea to Japan about 1,000 years ago.
Katsunuma's inland climate, large day-night temperature differences, long sunshine hours, and well-drained soils are well suited to grape growing. Here, Koshu took root as a variety unique to Japan.
In August 1877, under the Meiji government's policy of promoting industry, Japan's first wine company, Dainihon Yamanashi Budoshu Kaisha, was established in Katsunuma.
That same year, the company sent two young men, Masanari Takano and Sukeshiro Tsuchiya, to Troyes, France, to study authentic winemaking.
Driven by a strong sense of mission, the two returned to Japan and immediately began making wine using full-fledged French methods.
They used Koshu for white wine and the Adirondac variety, obtained from a government experimental nursery in Tokyo, for red wine.
The brand name of Marufuji Winery's wines is “Rubaiyat,” meaning a four-line poem.
One day in 1957, Sekikawa, an acquaintance of third-generation president Tadao Omura and an official of the Home Ministry, visited the winery with the poet and scholar Konosuke Hinatsu.
When they were served wine made with great care, Hinatsu was delighted and praised it as delicious.
Later, through Sekikawa, the winery asked Hinatsu to name the brand, and he gladly accepted.
PHOTO — NIHONWINE.JP editorial
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SOURCE — NIHONWINE.JP editorial