Harvest in Nagano is beginning to wind down and the summits of the 1500-2000 meters mountains that surround our home on the slopes of Mount Kurohime are already showing some snow. Typically, we can expect the first major snowfall by the end of this month and the close-by ski areas start operations in the first and second weeks of December.
Category: Chardonnay
April 2021 Recommendations
This month we are continuing what we did in March and going back to check the recent offerings from wineries that we have liked in the past. The wineries we selected are the Obuse Winery run by the iconoclastic Akihito Soga and the Chateau Mercian Mariko Vineyard, which is operated by the Kirin Brewery Corporation.
January / February 2021 Recommendations
We welcomed the New Year in Nagano with more than abundant snow. Quite a contrast to the previous year when the weather was generally warm and any precipitation usually took the form of rain. Needless to say, the pandemic has been a dark cloud on most everything – except our favorite pastime, which is to sit in front of our wood-burning stove holding a glass of wine with our young German Shepherd sleeping comfortably by our side.
June 2020 Recommendations
ALPS markets a very nice Chardonnay for 2700 yen under its Musee du Vin Maestro brand. This wine has a nice gold color and a fruity, fresh taste. But for 300 yen more a bottle, you get an entirely different experience: The Dynastie Shiojiri brand exclusively uses grapes from fields that are managed directly by the company rather than from contract farmers.
September 2019 Recommendations
We are starting to see signs of the coming Fall season in the mountains of Nagano. The local farmers are preparing the fields for the rice harvest, which starts mid-month, and the soba fields are now covered in white flowers. The temperature is also dropping, and we are awakening to mornings in the high teens … Continue reading September 2019 Recommendations
July 2019 Recommendations
July is one of those in between months in Japan: rainy at the start and then full-on summer by the close. We are bringing to you three wines that should help you through the transition. Interestingly, two of them are made from Japanese local varietals and the third is a successful experiment in combining Chardonnay grapes from different vintages.
June 2019 Recommendations
We would like to recommend some Nagano Chardonnays to start your summer off right. Both of the wines featured below are made in relatively small volumes, but you should be able to get your hands on either one through the producer's online shop or a major online shopping site. Happy drinking.
Friends of Nagano Wine 