About Cabernet Muscat Bailey A Hosaka Premium
- Style
- Red
- Grape Varieties
- Cabernet Sauvignon, Muscat Bailey A
- Price Range
- ¥2,800-2,900
- manufacturer's suggested retail price, current vintage
- Alcohol
- 13%
Cabernet Muscat Bailey A Hosaka Premium is the upper-tier red in Hombo Shuzo's Château Mars Prestige line, crafted at Mars Hosaka Winery from grapes grown in the Hosaka district of Nirasaki, Yamanashi. Barrel-aged Cabernet Sauvignon and Muscat Bailey A, each aged in oak for 12 months or more, are carefully selected and blended (assemblage) to build on the fruit character of the estate's Hosaka Shukaku Rouge with greater richness and maturity. The nose layers toasty oak with small red berries, blackberry, and Muscat Bailey A's signature raspberry-and-earth concentration; the palate offers soft berry fruit, generous but well-integrated tannin, and moderate acidity harmonized with oak, finishing long with ripe Muscat Bailey A and pleasant oak-derived tannin. It has repeatedly medaled at the Japan Wine Competition, Asian Wine Review, IWSC, and Decanter World Wine Awards.
The most concentrated expression of Hosaka's Cabernet Sauvignon and Muscat Bailey A — proof that Japanese hybrid grapes can carry real oak-aged structure when blended with intent.
New to wine?
A richer, oak-aged step up from the estate's everyday Hosaka reds — approachable thanks to Muscat Bailey A's soft fruit, but with real structure from barrel-aged Cabernet Sauvignon.
Food Pairings
Versatile across Japanese, Western, and Chinese cuisine, from white meats to red meat dishes; its oak-integrated tannin also stands up to grilled or braised beef and lamb.
When to drink it
Special dinners, grilled meat gatherings, gifting as a premium Japanese wine.
Terroir & Winemaking
Barrel-aged (12+ months in oak) Cabernet Sauvignon and Muscat Bailey A from Hosaka, Nirasaki, blended via assemblage. Medium-bodied. ABV 13% (current vintage; historic vintages have ranged 12-13%). 750ml bottle, cork closure.
About the producer
Mars Yamanashi WineryOver 60 years crafting Yamanashi's Chateau Mars wines笛吹市, 山梨県 · Founded 1960Visit the producer page →More wines from Mars Yamanashi Winery
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Frequently Asked Questions
- What grapes go into Cabernet Muscat Bailey A Hosaka Premium?
- It's an assemblage (blend) of barrel-aged Cabernet Sauvignon and Muscat Bailey A, both grown in the Hosaka district of Nirasaki, Yamanashi.
- What does this wine taste like?
- Medium-bodied with toasty oak, red berry and blackberry aromas layered over Muscat Bailey A's raspberry-and-earth concentration, soft berry fruit, generous integrated tannin, and a long finish of ripe fruit and oak-derived tannin.
- What food pairs well with it?
- It pairs broadly with Japanese, Western, and Chinese cuisine, and its oak tannin holds up especially well to grilled or braised beef and lamb dishes.
- How is it different from Château Mars Hosaka Shukaku Rouge?
- It builds on the same Hosaka red-blend fruit character but uses grapes aged in oak barrels for 12 months or more, giving it greater richness, concentration, and maturity than the everyday Shukaku Rouge.
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