Kamonone Muscat Bailey A

Kamonone Muscat Bailey A is a dry still red wine from Kumamoto Wine Farm's Kikuka Winery in Yamaga City, Kumamoto Prefecture, part of 'Kamonone' (literally 'the sound of fermentation'), the winery's winery-and-online-shop-exclusive 'variety series' devoted to showcasing the character of individual Japanese grape varieties in an everyday-friendly style. Unlike the other Kamonone releases, which are gas-injected sparkling wines, this bottling is a conventional non-sparkling red made from 100% domestically grown Muscat Bailey A — Japan's most widely planted red grape, bred by Zenbei Kawakami, 'the father of Japanese wine,' and registered with the OIV. Destemmed and crushed grapes are moved whole-berry into clean stainless steel tanks, fermented with a yeast strain selected to match grape ripeness, and gently pumped over (remontage) at 25-28°C to keep color and tannin extraction restrained in favor of balance. After alcoholic fermentation the wine is racked off the skins, which are pressed separately; the free-run wine is then cold-stabilized, racked to clarify, tank-aged, and bottled. The result is a food-friendly, medium-bodied dry red with a restrained foxy strawberry note, cherry and blueberry fruit, violet florals, and a touch of black pepper spice — designed as an approachable, all-purpose red for pairing with Japanese cuisine.