2023 Domaine Nakajima Pét-Nat Rosé

WINEMAKER: Yutaka Nakajima
REGION: Nagano, JP
VARIETY: Kyoho
VITICULTURE: Organic

Undeniably unique pet nat made from the table grape variety Kyoho, which has large berries. After harvest they are dried for two weeks prior to being pressed without any skin contact and fermented in bottle without sulphur or other additives.

Yutaka Nakajima corresponds exactly to the image of a Japanese winemaker. Lowkey, humble and intelligent; a caring craftsman with a sense of simple beauty who makes hard-to-reach wines in a small house up in the mountains. The cultivation takes place hands off while the work in the winery is done literally by hand with the help of self-made and hand-cranked wooden tools.

Located at an altitude of 850 meters in Tomi, Nagano, in the heart of Japan, Domaine Nakajima is one of more than a dozen small producers in the Chikumagawa Wine Valley region. 

Since the climate is cooler and drier than in the rest of Japan - more like the European one - it has been possible to plant a variety of mainly French grape varieties here among the mountains. 

Yutaka Nakajima has grown its small slope since 2011: Cabernet franc, sauvignon blanc, merlot and chenin blanc with tall wild grass and herbs between the rows. In 2019, he planted his second vineyard in a cooler location at an even higher altitude - this time with Jura-inspired varieties such as savagnin and pinot noir. The own cultivation so far yields only a few thousand bottles each year. As a complement to these, a charming pet nat is also produced together with local farmers, made from the hybrid grape kyoho which has a strong tradition here in Tomi.