NEWS
JAPANESE DRINKS GIANTS TO DOUBLE VINE AREAS BY 2027 TO MEET RISING GLOBAL DEMANDS
By Susan Lewis
20-2-2025
Credit: Novel Wine/Facebook
Japan's drinks giants are working to double their vineyard areas by 2027 to meet rising global demands for Japanese wines made from locally grown native varieties.
This expansion drive was spurred by the new labelling rule which strictly defines "Japanese wines" as those fermented in Japan from 100 percent locally grown grapes, the Nikkei Asian Review said.
It replaced the previous lax rule which permitted the use of imported concentrated grape juice as long as some wine was produced in Japan.
Chateau Mercian, owned by Kirin Holdings, has plans to expand its vineyards by 50 percent from 50 to 76 hectares by 2027.
Global wine and spirits giant Suntory Holdings is set to double its vine areas to over 50 hectares.
Sapporo Holdings has made significant investments on the northern island of Hokkaido and intends to expand its vineyards by 150 percent to 41 hectares by 2025.
Asahi Group, in addition to its existing 1 hectare vineyard in Yamanashi Prefecture, is planting vines on 6 hectares of newly acquired land in Hokkaido, with the goal of expanding its vineyard areas to over 10 hectares across Japan by 2025.
By 2027, these four major producers will own a combined 170 hectares of vineyards, accounting for approximately 20 percent of all grape cultivation in Japan.
Most Japanese wines are made from the indigenous white variety Koshu and the hybrid red variety Muscat Bailey A, both are rarely found in other wine producing countries.
These Japanese varieties have gained global recognition in recent years leading to much higher demands in international markets.
(the writer can be contacted at: info@thewinechronicle.com)
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