Hello! I’m AKI, LA GALERIE shop manager.

The other day, we, along with LE BISTRO and our in-house sommelier team, had the opportunity to help with the grape harvest at Domaine Kosei in Shiojiri, Nagano Prefecture.

Domaine Kosei is a winery founded in 2019 by winemaker Toshinari Ajimura in the Kataoka district of Shiojiri, Nagano. They have been exclusively cultivating Merlot since 2016.

In 2020, we purchased wine by the barrel and created the “Domaine Kosei Private Barrel 2020” by applying our unique label to the bottled wine.

Thanks to this connection, our in-house sommelier team has been visiting every year since 2021 to help with the harvest. While some of you may have visited wineries before, you might not have had the opportunity to partake in the harvest. Even our corporate sommelier, Hiroshi Ishida, had his first experience! We consider it a very valuable experience.

We boarded the 8:00 AM Azusa Express from Shinjuku, and around 10:30 AM, we arrived at Shiojiri Station. From there, it was just a 10-minute taxi ride to the winery. Once we arrived, we moved to the vineyard and received instructions about what to look out for.

We used pruning shears to carefully remove grapes with almost no moisture, resembling raisins, as well as very small, still yellowish-green grapes. These were placed into baskets as we harvested.

We harvested row by row, with each of us responsible for a designated section. Everyone worked diligently, focusing on their grapes.

Once we finished our section, we helped others and moved on to the next row, repeating the process. It required a great deal of concentration, and the low working position put some strain on our legs and backs.

However, we knew that any compromise in our work could affect the taste of the wine, so everyone was determined. It was a beautiful, sunny autumn day, and the breeze made it very pleasant. Shiojiri, at an altitude of nearly 700 meters, received ample sunlight. Bathed in the sun’s rays alongside the grapes, it was a truly precious experience.

This year’s grapes were the best in the past five years, according to Mr. Ajimura. The grapes were plump and healthy, with very few clusters affected by the disease, making the harvest progress smoothly.

We, of course, have Domaine Kosei’s wines available at LA GALERIE as well. I encourage you all to give them a try.

LA GALERIE WINE SHOP(Kitasando, Tokyo)
Shop Manager AKI