Kikuka Chardonnay Barrel Aged 2020, 13%, 750 ml

Kikuka Chardonnay Barrel Aged 2020, 13%, 750 ml

Name: Kikuka Chardonnay Barrel Aged 2020, 13%, 750 ml
Brand: KUMAMOTO
SKU: NISKUMA1
Price: 73.00 EUR
Availability: InStock

Ref : NISKUMA1

€73.00

Tax Included

€97.33 / Kg

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Kumamoto Wine Farm and Kikuka Winery is one of Japan's finest producers of Chardonnay wine.

Kumamoto Wine Farm works in partnership with around 30 winegrowers (covering a total of 9 hectares) to produce wine, specifically 90% Chardonnay.

Grapes are 100% produced in the Kikukka town. Vineyards are located in a basin area that offers an ideal environment for growing grapes: well ventilated, with over 2,000 hours of sunshine per year and good drainage thanks to the soil surface, which contains a lot of mountain sand. Plots are located at altitudes of 100 to 200 meters.

Although terrain is mainly flat, there are also terraced areas created by rivers, and region has some of the lowest water temperatures in Kumamoto Prefecture, which affects temperature differences and creates the terroir. Grapes are harvested by hand between late August and mid-September, and integration of grape compounds is controlled using a mechanical temperature control device. Production process involves destemming and crushing grapes and slowly pressing juice.

While partner farmers grow their grapes using the VSP system, they have adopted the pergola system for their own vineyards. Fermentation tanks and stainless steel presses at Kikuka Winery are compact in size as they produce wine in small batches for each type of grape. All alcoholic fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks. Fermentation temperature is 15 to 20 degrees Celsius.

After alcoholic fermentation, wine is selected by sensory testing for each tank and then transferred to French oak barrels. It is aged in barrels for about a year before being bottled. This Chardonnay is elegant and very aromatic, with hints of high-quality French oak and lots of ripe citrus fruits such as grapefruit and stone fruits such as apricot and peach (white peach and yellow peach).

It has lively acidity and strong minerality. Flavors are pleasantly concentrated with ripe citrus such as lemon with oil and zest. Oak aromas are very well integrated with notes of white spices and vanilla, toasted nuts, and butter, which add to complexity. The finish is persistent and quite long. The round, rich flavor delicately coats the entire palate. Soft acidity gives it a firm structure, and it has a long, persistent aftertaste that is powerful yet beautiful and elegant.

Viscosity is strong and slightly aging. This is a classic, very well-made woody Chardonnay. It will be interesting to observe its evolution over the years in the cellar.

We recommend serving it at a slightly higher temperature than a classic Chardonnay and in a large glass. Attack is supple and elegant. The clean, silky acidity and moderate aroma combine to form the full body, and the concentrated fruit slowly spreads across the palate.

You can enjoy its rich, elegant flavor for a long time. It goes well with white fish (sea bream, sea bass, brill, turbot), shellfish, white poultry, raw vegetables, mild soft cheeses, etc.

Data sheet

Weight: 0,75 Kg net
Ingredients: grapes, sulfites
Storage: 12 à 15°C
Volume of pure alcohol: 13%
Appearance: medium golden
Idéal tasting temperature: 14°C-16°C
Category: dry WHITE wine
Recommandation: EXCESSIVE CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL IS DANGEROUS FOR YOUR HEALTH. DRINK WITH MODERATION. CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES DURING PREGNANCY, EVEN IN SMALL QUANTITY, CAN HAVE SEVERE CONSEQUENCES FOR THE CHILD’S HEALTH. THE SALE OF ALCOHOL IS FORBIDDEN TO MINORS UNDER AGE 18
Winery: Kumamoto Winery
Location: 168-17 Mitsuzuka, Izumi-cho, Kita-ku, Kumamoto city, Kumamoto
Quantity produced: not specified
Bottle color: Dark
Grape variety: Chardonnay
Grape origin: Kikuka, Kumamoto
Yeast type: Cultured yeast
Fermentation type: Low-temperature fermentation
Fermentation process: Stainless steel vats
Filtration method: Filtered
Aging method: In French oak barrels (7-year-old barrels) for 12 months
Vineyard: Partners
Altitude: 150-200 m
Latitude: 32°
Annual sunshine (hours): 1884 hours
Climate: Cold maritime
Average annual temperature: 14,9 ℃
Average annual precipitation: 2177 mm
Soil type: Brown plain soil, Andosol
Average age of vines: 25 years
Trellising system: Vertical positioning of shoots
Harvesting method: Manual
Harvest year: 2020

KUMAMOTO

DOMAINE

Kumamoto Wine Farm owns two wineries in Kumamoto Prefecture. One is Kumamoto Winery, founded in 1999, and the other is Kikuka Winery, founded in 2018. Kumamoto Wine Farm is partnered with about 30 grape farmers (total 9ha) to make wine. The vineyards are located in a basin area with a good environment for grape-growing: well-ventilated, with over 2,000 hours of sunlight / year and a good drainage due to the ground surface which contains a lot of mountain sand.

The soil is a well-balanced mixture with fields characterized by brown lowland soil (fine drainage) and black soil derived from volcanic ash (water-retentive). Although the location is a high rainfall area, they have rain-cut facilities (automatic openable greenhouse) to protect grapes from diseases and have underdrains to maintain a good drainage environment. The grapes are harvested by hand from late August to mid-September, and the integrant from the compounds of the grapes are controlled by using a mechanical temperature control device . At the Kikuka Winery’s owned vineyard (1.5ha), they cultivate Chardonnay, and other grapes such as Gewurztraminer / Viognier / Cabernet Franc / Merlot / Gamay /Pinot Noir, which had not been cultivated widely in the Kyushu area.

While their partner farmers cultivate their grapes using the VSP system, they adopted the pergola system for their own vineyard. Kikuka Winery’s stainless steel fermentation tanks and pressing machines are a compact size because they make wine in small batches for each type of grape.

HISTORY

“Kumamoto winery”, the first winery in Kumamoto, was founded in 1999. While inspecting various areas in Kumamoto, they discovered bright red salvia flowers blooming in Kikuka.

Salvia is a type of flower that grows in the tropics to subtropics with large temperature differences between day and night. After seeing salvia blooming, they were assured that the Kikuka area had a great possibility of becoming a fine vineyard. In the Kikuka area, wine grapes were not cultivated, so they contacted 3 farmers to start cultivating Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. In the fourth year, they finally became able to harvest Chardonnay, and they released “Kikuka Night Harvest Chardonnay 2003”.

They succeeded to harvest grapes at night when the temperatures are lower (it was the first attempt in Japan at that time). “Kikuka Winery” was newly established in Kikuka in 2018 since it took an hour to move grapes from the farms to the Kumamoto Winery. That was also when they finally succeeded in developing their own vineyard. In 2022, they won the highest category award at a domestic wine competition and started to show glimpses of its terroir. Currently, they are partnered with 31 farmers and are always striving to improve their manufacturing technique and the quality of their wine, as well as also trying to cultivate other types of grapes in their own vineyard.

Awards Chardonnay du Monde

2020 – Kikuka Chardonnay Barrel Aged

2017 Silver 2022 – Kikuka Chardonnay Silver

2023 - Kikuka Chardonnay Barrel Aged

2020 Gold - Kikuka Chardonnay Silver Sakura Awards

2021 – Delaware Silver 2022 - Niagara Gold - Campbell Early Silver Japan Wine Competition

2022 – Kikuka Chardonnay Barrel Aged 2019 Category Gold