About Iwate Blend Cork
- Style
- Red
- Grape Varieties
- Campbell Early, Niagara
- Price Range
- ¥1,500
- excl. tax
Iwate Blend Cork is the cork-finished edition of Kamegamori Brewery's signature Iwate Blend, made from the region's two classic hybrid varieties, Campbell Early and Niagara, grown on the winery's own vines in the Osawa valley basin of Hanamaki. Unlike the crown-capped Iwate Blend, this version is bottled fully still (no bottle-conditioned fizz) under natural cork, unfiltered, with no added sugar, acid, or sulfites, and is left to develop its naturally deepening amber-brown hue in bottle. The nose leads with the unmistakable strawberry-candy lift of Campbell Early, carried on a light, juicy palate typical of Japan's native-soil, low-intervention winemaking.
The cork-finished Iwate Blend shows a rare side of Campbell Early: still, unfiltered, and left to brown naturally — a snapshot of what this Tohoku hybrid grape can do without any winemaking safety net.
New to wine?
A gentle, candy-strawberry-scented red for anyone new to natural wine — light, easy to drink, and not overly tannic.
Food Pairings
Its juicy, strawberry-scented profile pairs easily with lightly sweetened Japanese dishes such as teriyaki chicken, unadon, or fruit-topped desserts; also good chilled as an aperitif on its own.
When to drink it
Casual dinners, aperitif, everyday drinking with Japanese home cooking
Terroir & Winemaking
Estate-grown Campbell Early and Niagara, over 90% self-farmed without herbicides or chemical fertilizer. No chaptalization, no acid adjustment, no added sulfites, unfiltered, bottled under natural cork as a still (non-sparkling) wine.
About the producer
Kamegamori BreweryUnfiltered, additive-free wines and ciders from Iwate's Osawa valley花巻市, 岩手県 · Founded 2015Visit the producer page →Frequently Asked Questions
- What grapes are used in Iwate Blend Cork?
- It is a blend of Campbell Early and Niagara, two hybrid grape varieties widely grown in Iwate Prefecture, both farmed on Kamegamori Brewery's own vines.
- How is Iwate Blend Cork different from the regular (crown-cap) Iwate Blend?
- The crown-cap Iwate Blend is bottled with a light, bottle-conditioned sparkle at 9% ABV, while Iwate Blend Cork is a still, non-sparkling wine sealed with natural cork instead of a crown cap.
- Does Iwate Blend Cork contain added sulfites?
- No. Like the rest of Kamegamori Brewery's range, it is made with no added sugar, no added acid, and no added sulfites, and bottled unfiltered.
- Why does the wine have a brownish-orange color?
- Because it is unfiltered and made without added sulfites, the wine's color naturally deepens toward amber-brown over time in bottle, a common trait of low-intervention wines from this style of winemaking.
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