By Ian Neubauer
Wine Australia Japan hosted a tasting session in Tokyo for the creators of The Drops of God, a wine comic book and TV series that has had a major impact on sales in the East Asian nation.
The Landmark Australia tasting has been dubbed a “major coup” by Wine Australia Japan — a marketing arm of the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation — which hopes to win Australian labels placement in the comic book series that has focused almost exclusively on European wines.
A diverse mix of wines were sampled at the event, including a Clare Valley Riesling, an 11-year-old Hunter Semillon and classic. Chardonnays from Margaret River and Adelaide Hills. Pinot Noir and Cabernet varietals were also sampled prior to the uncorking of the piece de resistance — a rare Para Liqueur Tawny from the 1879 vintage.
Wine Australia regional manager, Hiro Tejima, said the event moved mountains in promoting Australian wines to a group of highly influential wine connoisseurs who had very little knowledge of and experience with Australian wines.
“Our guests were excited to think about how this world of new Australian wines can be made better known to the Japanese wine community.
“Maybe a 130-year-old fortified will further the zeal of Kanzaki-san in his quest to discover the 12 apostles,” he said, referring to the comic book’s hero Shizuku Kanzaki and his quest to discover the world’s greatest ‘wine apostles’.