About this wine
A flagship dry red from Ajimu Winery in Oita Prefecture, made from 100% Muscat Bailey A grown in the Ajimu basin. Selected grapes are destemmed, crushed, and partially bled off (saignée) to concentrate skin contact before fermentation, then aged in oak barrels for about a year. The result integrates the variety's signature strawberry and candy-like fruit with vanilla, spice, and toasted oak notes, giving the wine a silky texture and a more serious, structured profile than most Muscat Bailey A on the market. Earlier vintages have won awards including a bronze at the Japan Wine Challenge and a silver at the Japan Wine Competition.
A gentle, approachable entry point into serious Japanese red wine — familiar berry sweetness softened by elegant oak.
Sommelier's Note
"This is one of the clearest proofs that Muscat Bailey A can carry real oak aging — the barrel doesn't mask the grape's candied fruit character, it gives it a spine."
Food Pairings
Pairs beautifully with soy-glazed and grilled dishes — sukiyaki, yakitori with tare sauce, and unagi kabayaki all bring out the wine's oak-derived spice and umami harmony. Also works well with mushroom-based pasta and demi-glace-sauced hamburg steak.
When to drink it
A good everyday-special choice for dinners featuring Japanese soy-based dishes, or as a gift showcasing quality Japanese winemaking.
Specs
- Grape Varieties
- Muscat Bailey A
- Style
- Red
- Price Range
- ¥2,500-3,000
Terroir & Winemaking
100% Muscat Bailey A from the Ajimu basin, Oita. Grapes are destemmed and crushed, with a portion of juice bled off (saignée) to raise the skin-to-juice ratio before fermentation, then aged in oak barrels for approximately 12 months. ABV 11.5%, dry style, typically bottled at 750ml.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What does Ajimu's Barrel-Aged Muscat Bailey A taste like?
- Vibrant strawberry and candied-fruit notes typical of Muscat Bailey A, layered with vanilla, spice, and a smooth toasted-oak finish from about a year in barrel.
- What food pairs best with this wine?
- Soy-sauce-based Japanese dishes such as sukiyaki, tare-glazed yakitori, and unagi kabayaki bring out the wine's oak spice and umami balance.
- Is this wine dry or sweet?
- It is a dry (karakuchi) red wine, not sweet, despite the naturally fruity Muscat Bailey A aromatics.
Want to know more about this wine?
Ask Vinami's sommelier — no intimidation, just answers.
Talk to the SommelierMore wines from this producer
安心院ワイン メルロー
Ajimu Merlot
RedMerlot
Ajimu Merlot is a dry red wine from Ajimu Winery (Sanwa Shurui) in Usa, Oita Prefecture, made from 100% Ajimu-grown Merlot. Fermented in stainless steel tanks and aged roughly one year in oak barrels followed by further bottle aging, it shows a glossy, pale garnet color with layered aromas of raspberry and blackcurrant, rose and herbal florals, and gentle spice. At about 12.2% ABV, the palate is light-to-medium bodied with soft, well-integrated tannins and clean acidity, making it an approachable everyday red rather than the winery's flagship bottling.
安心院ワイン シャルドネ リザーブ
Ajimu Chardonnay Reserve
WhiteChardonnay
Ajimu Chardonnay Reserve is the flagship barrel-fermented white from Ajimu Winery in Oita Prefecture, made from 100% fully ripened Chardonnay grown in the fog-cooled Ajimu basin. The wine is fermented and aged entirely in new oak barrels, giving it a concentrated, complex character with aromas of citrus, rose, caramel, and butter. The 2023 vintage won the Grand Gold Award (グランドゴールド賞), the top honor at the Japan Wine Competition 2024, cementing its status as one of Ajimu's most decorated cuvées.
安心院ワイン アルバリーニョ
Ajimu Albariño
WhiteAlbariño
Ajimu Albariño is Ajimu Winery's pioneering bottling of Albariño, a Spanish grape the winery began trial-planting around 2011 at its own Oka Farm estate vineyard in the fog-laden Ajimu basin, whose warm days and sharp diurnal temperature swings suit the variety well. The grapes are fermented in stainless steel tanks at low temperature for about two to three weeks, often using two different yeast strains, to preserve fresh varietal aromatics without oxidation. The result is a dry, aromatic white with white peach, citrus and floral (honeysuckle-like) notes, a touch of grapefruit bitterness, and a saline, mineral-tinged finish reminiscent of Albariño's Spanish homeland. The 2021 vintage won a gold medal at the Japan Wine Competition 2022 — the first gold ever awarded to an Albariño in that competition's history — cementing Ajimu as a pioneer of the variety in Japan. Building on this success, the winery has since expanded into single-vineyard Albariño bottlings from its Shimoge, Yazu and Omio plots, plus a premium late-harvest-style 'Gokka' selection, but this base cuvée remains the entry point to Ajimu's Albariño program.