Obihiro Winery
帯広ワイナリー
Pesticide-free wild-grape wines from Tokachi's coldest frontier.
Aizawa Winery is a small, family-run estate in Itaira, Obihiro, in Hokkaido's Tokachi region. What began in 1998 as an effort by farmer Tatsuya Aizawa to save Hokkaido's disappearing wild grapevines (yamabudo) grew, over two decades, into a winery: the vineyard's best-tasting vines were selected and propagated, the winery itself was completed in 2019 — the first new winery to open in Tokachi in 56 years — and commercial wine sales began in 2020 under his son, Ichiro Aizawa. The estate farms yamabudo, Kiyomi, Yamasachi, and Kiyomai entirely without pesticides or chemical fertilizers, relying on Tokachi's brutal winters, which freeze the soil roughly a meter deep, to naturally suppress pests and disease. Aizawa's approach to winemaking is deliberately hands-off, trusting wild yeasts and natural fermentation to express the raw character of Hokkaido's indigenous vines.
aizawanouen.com/ ↗Cuvées
Who Is This For?
For explorers of Japan's indigenous wild-grape wines — those who want an unfiltered, terroir-driven taste of Hokkaido's harshest wine country, made without any chemical intervention.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Aizawa Winery the same as Ikeda Wine Castle?
- No. Aizawa Winery is an independent, family-run estate in Obihiro's Itaira district, while Ikeda Wine Castle (Tokachi Wine) is a municipally-run winery in the neighboring town of Ikeda, founded in 1963.
- What grape varieties does Aizawa Winery use?
- The winery grows wild Hokkaido grapevines (yamabudo, Vitis amurensis) alongside the cold-hardy hybrids Kiyomi, Yamasachi, and Kiyomai — all bred or selected to survive Tokachi's extreme winters.
- Why is Aizawa Winery's farming pesticide-free?
- Tokachi's winters freeze the soil roughly a meter deep, killing off overwintering pests and disease naturally. Aizawa Winery leans on this cold-climate advantage instead of chemical treatments, farming 100% pesticide- and chemical-fertilizer-free.
- When was Aizawa Winery founded?
- Grape growing began in 1998, when farmer Tatsuya Aizawa started propagating wild vines to prevent their decline. The winery itself was completed in 2019 — the first new winery to open in Tokachi in 56 years — with the first commercial releases following in 2020.
- What is Aizawa Winery's winemaking philosophy?
- A deliberately relaxed, low-intervention approach: wild yeast fermentation and minimal handling, letting nature — rather than anxious monitoring — shape the wine.