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The Okitama region in southern Yamagata Prefecture has long been a thriving grape growing region, with many long-established wineries, along with newer wineries, producing high-quality Japanese wines and bringing them to market
Takahata Winery (Takahata Town)
Takahata Town, famous as the filming location for the movie "Swing Girls," is the number one municipality in Japan for shipping Chardonnay, Delaware, and other wines. Founded in Takahata in 1990, the winery holds its annual autumn harvest festival, attracting many wine lovers from inside and outside the prefecture
In addition to white, red, rosé, and sparkling wines, including the company's own vineyard series and the farmer's name series, they also produce fruit wines such as cherry and pear. Of these, we recommend the "Flagship Series," which brings together the best of the winery's brewing techniques
Zodiac Chardonnay Night Harvest (White: 100% Chardonnay)
This exquisite white wine is made with Chardonnay from our own estate, full of flavor. It has aromas of pine and peach, as well as hints of oak and vanilla, and a smooth acidity
This is the oldest winery in the Tohoku region, having been making wine in Akayu since the Meiji era, using grapes from several of their own vineyards and making wine using traditional methods without filtering. In addition to wine (red, white, rosé, sparkling), they also sell undiluted grape juice and red wine salt
They offer wines such as Bird+Up Wine, which is made using grapes from their own vineyards in Bird+Up, which has the highest yield, but the one we recommend is their flagship wine, made using grapes from Bird+Up's Nagoya vineyard
This long-established winery has been producing wine in Akayu, Nanyo City since 1939. They make the most of the unique characteristics of locally grown grapes to produce high-quality wine with a clean finish
Barrel Aged Rouge (Red: Bailey Account A)
Akayu's own vineyards are home to a wide variety of grapes, both native to Japan and Western European varieties, which are used to produce a wide range of wines. Among these, the red wine made from the rare "Bailey Account A" grapes is particularly outstanding
Barrel Aged Rouge (Red: Bailey Account A)
Information
Facility name: Oura Winery
Address: 312 Akayu, Nanyo City, Yamagata Prefecture
Founded in the Taisho era, this winery uses grapes grown on its own land, and everything from cultivation and harvesting to brewing and bottling is done by the owner's family
The original wine you make during the wine-making experience will be sent to you with a label you create yourself. There are red and white wines under the original brands "Shikinen" and "Sakurasui Wine," but production is low and they are rarely seen in stores
Shikinen (red: Muscat Bailey A 100%)
The wine is made from 100-year-old grapes grown on Shikinen, the wine's own grape farm, and you can enjoy its concentrated, distinctive aroma and sour taste
Information
Facility name: Sudo Winery
Address: 2836 Akayu, Nanyo City, Yamagata Prefecture
Phone number: 0238-43-2578
URL: None
Google Map
Kinkei Wine Sato Wine (Nanyo City)
Since its founding in 1940, the company has been brewing wine using 100% grapes grown in Yamagata Prefecture, with the ambition of making Yamagata Prefecture a world-renowned wine-producing region
Four varieties of red wine are cultivated, mainly endemic to Japan, and four varieties of white wine are also cultivated, and Jinkei wine is available in red, white, rosé and sparkling varieties
The winery opened in 2017, and by 2020 they had harvested over 100 tons of natural wine, increasing the number of grape varieties in their own vineyards and producing 100,000 bottles of natural wine per year
Here, the wine is brewed in ceramic jars called "ampora" imported directly from Spain. The amphora method has been used for about 8,000 years and is making a comeback in Europe as it is suitable for making natural wine
Cuvee Nitta (Orange: Delaware 75%, Niagara 19%, Shine Muscat 6%)
This wine is made from 100% grapes grown in our own farm in Nanyo City. The amphora creates an exquisite balance of the aroma of mandarin oranges and honey with the fruity flavor and acidity of the grapes and soft tannins
Information
Facility name: Grape Public
Address: 3945-94 Nitta, Nanyo City, Yamagata Prefecture
Translated as "Yellow Magic Brewery," the company began brewing in Akayu, Nanyo City in 2019
Akayu wine is made from grapes grown in Akayu and brewed with natural yeast, and the alcohol content is not adjusted by adding sugar; instead, the grapes are fermented with the skins on, bringing out the delicious flavor of the grapes
The grapes are grown without pesticides under vinyl roofs to protect them from the adverse effects of rain. They are fermented naturally at low temperatures, allowing the natural yeast to take its time to extract its power, resulting in a natural wine made without adding or subtracting anything
A sake brewery that has been producing sake in Yonezawa since 1866 began making wine in 1957. They use the famous water from the Yonezawa Basin, which experiences extreme temperature differences, to produce mellow sake and wine
There are the single-variety Faucon, the OKIMASAMUNE blend of European and Japanese varieties, and the Arashibori series of cloudy wines. "Faucon" means "hawk" in French, and was named after Uesugi Yozan, the 9th lord of the Yonezawa domain
Faucon Bailey A (red: 100% Muscat Bailey A)
It has a deep ruby color, a rich fruity flavor, rich acidity, deep sweetness, and powerful silky tannins
Information
Facility name: Hamada Co., Ltd
Address: 943-1 Fujiizumi, Kubota-cho, Yonezawa City, Yamagata Prefecture
The Okitama region of Yamagata Prefecture is one of the leading wine-producing regions in the Tohoku region, and is home to a large number of wineries, both old and new. Even if the same grape variety is used, you can enjoy the different flavors of the wines produced by each winery, each with their own unique character
I am a former Edo guy who loves Morioka, loves the six prefectures of Tohoku, and loves history, gourmet food, travel, sports, alcohol, and singing. We'll introduce you to some interesting, delicious, and good things about Tohoku!
![Exterior of Takahata Winery](https://jp.neft.asia/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/PXL_20240417_022628545-150x150.jpg.webp "[Takahata Town, Yamagata Prefecture] "Takahata Winery" is located at 38 degrees north latitude, the same latitude as America's famous wine-producing region Napa Valley.")
![PXL_20220922_044645946](https://jp.neft.asia/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/PXL_20220922_044645946-150x150.jpg.webp "We tried weaving in the Okitama region of Yamagata Prefecture, "The Town of Textiles"!")
![Fairytale images](https://jp.neft.asia/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/be73b392233d2fe609797e999f8ca547-1-150x150.jpg.webp "Scary and slightly sad stories... "Michinoku Otogi Kaido" with many stories left behind [Shichigasyu-cho, Shiraishi City, Miyagi Prefecture]")
