This is a new winery that opened in July 2023. It is located on a hill in the naturally rich Kuguno Town, Takayama City, Gifu Prefecture. It is the first winery in the Hida region of Gifu Prefecture, and the first winery in Gifu Prefecture to grow and brew European grape varieties (Vitis vinifera) in-house. The vineyard is located in a cool area at an altitude of 800 meters in the Kobo area of Kuguno Town, and mainly grows white wine varieties. The brewing facility is located in the middle of a pasture overlooking Mt. Norikura in the Onishi area of Kuguno Town, and in the future, the pasture will be replanted into a wine vineyard.
Winemaking is basically agricultural, and brewing only with locally harvested ingredients was a high hurdle for establishing a winery in the Hida region, where there is no history of cultivating wine grapes. Therefore, my wife and I decided to start by cultivating wine grapes while regenerating abandoned farmland. As this was the first such attempt in the prefecture, in parallel with farm work in Hida Takayama, I studied grape cultivation and winemaking at Villa d’Est Garden Farm and Winery and Arc en Vigne in Nagano Prefecture for the first year, and then at Say’s Farm in Toyama Prefecture for the next three years.
If we were to become wine lovers and seek a better environment for winemaking, we would probably choose a famous wine-producing region in Japan or abroad. However, my wife and I had a strong desire to add a new option to our hometown of Hida Takayama, which has a rich food culture, by creating wine, so we chose to take on the challenge in Hida Takayama and create wine that can only be made in Hida Takayama.
