Producers

Nestled at the foot of the Zao Federation mountain range in Kawasaki Town, Miyagi is Fattoria al Fiore, a winery that sits housed within a former school gymnasium. Established in 2015 by Hirotaka and Reina Meguro, the old basketball court now plays home to a sea of amphora filled with the likes of Koshu, Delaware, Muscat A Baily and many more indigenous varieties.

Yutaka Nakajima was studying at chef school when he discovered wine. With a love for natural wine and a strong affection for Alsace Yutaka got experience working vineyards in the Loire and Baden (Germany). In 2011 he planted his vineyard in Tomi, Nagano with the winery following in 2014. 

Grape Republic was founded by restaurateur and sommelier Kazuomi Fujimaki in 2015 who up and moved from Tokyo to the village of Shinden in Yamagata. With no previous experience in winemaking - he set three simple rules for himself: The cultivation must be organic, the wines must be made without sulfur and other additives, and they should preferably have a touch of amphora storage. The goal was to make live and clear Japanese wines in free style using the grapes grown in Yamagata's orchards throughout the 20th century.

Ryo Tanabe moved from Tokyo to Tomi City, Nagano with the intention start growing organic vegetables and eventually grapes in 2011. His farm is located at an altitude of 600-800m and is conveniently nestled right next to Yutaka from Domaine Nakajima whom he currently shares a space for brewing.

In the charming Katabashi region of Nagano Prefecture, a unique collaboration blossomed in 2020 when Charles, an American, teamed up with Kabeko, a proud native of Nagano Prefecture, to partake in the timeless tradition of grape harvesting. Tucked away in the heart of Nagano, the Katabashi area is affectionately known as "The Corner District" for its distinctive location perched at an elevation of 800 meters.

I first met Masamitsu back in 2017 when he was working with the infamous Kazu ex Grape Republic. After a number of years working as head winemaker at Grape Republic, Mitsu seeked out his own vineyard, renting a Delaware farm in Kubote, Kaminoyama City in Yamagata in 2019, cultivating and brewing wine in the Spring of 2020. 

OJISAN is an exciting new project by Alex Craighead of New Zealand's KINDELI and Kazuomi Fujimaki ex Grape Republic, Japan.