[Press Release] Yokohama's first winery opens in Shinyamashita!

Style Japan Associates LLC (head office: Yamashita-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama) will open Yokohama's first fruit wine brewery, Yokohama Winery, in Shinyamashita 1-chome on November 1st. The company will begin brewing wine and release two items on Friday, December 8th, which will go on sale in stores. Yokohama Winery is an urban winery that does not own any orchards, but instead purchases grapes domestically, ferments them in Yokohama, and sells the wine (although wine grapes are hardly grown in Yokohama, let alone Kanagawa Prefecture). Wine (fruit liquor) production requires approval from the National Tax Agency. This is the first time that wine (fruit liquor) has been produced in the Yokohama area, and the production license was notified on November 1st. The target production volume is about 8,000 bottles in 750ml bottles. The wine will be sold mainly to Yokohama residents and tourists visiting Yokohama. This year, grapes will be purchased from Tohoku, Yamanashi, and Nagano, and about eight items are scheduled to be released. This is "Japanese wine" made from 100% Japanese ingredients. Yokohama Winery's distinctive feature is that it does not just make and sell wine, but also offers consumers the opportunity to experience "food manufacturing" and think about food issues. It has three policies: 1) To use ingredients that are grown by people who know the producers and that put as little strain on the earth as possible; 2) To provide opportunities for consumers to participate in the cultivation and brewing processes; and 3) To allow consumers to experience the process rather than simply buying the product. It is also rare to be able to see the brewing site in the city center. This project has been certified as a Yokohama City fiscal 2017 local production and consumption business creation support project, and in the future, there are plans to collaborate with producers to produce wine using agricultural products grown in Yokohama and to hold harvesting experiences at orchards in the city. The company is also participating in the Yokohama Reuse Bottle Project run by the Yokohama City Resource Recycling Business Cooperative Association, and will contribute to reducing CO2 emissions by combining "regional circulation" of bottles with "local production and consumption." The idea for the business started when they realized that Yokohama had beer but no wine. Representative Yoshiko Machida said, "We want to connect producers with consumers. We named it 'hamawine' because we wanted it to be a wine that would be loved locally. We've made a wine that emphasizes the fruitiness, so we hope you enjoy the producers' thoughts and the taste of the grapes." This winery business is also in collaboration with Masaki Takasaku (CEO of HEIDI Winery), a winemaker from Monzen-cho, Ishikawa Prefecture, originally from Yokohama. It is also supported by many other connections made in Yokohama. <Inquiries regarding this matter> Yokohama Winery Contact: Yoshiko Machida TEL 090-3960-1522 email: ask@yokohamawinery.com (Operating company: Style Japan Associates LLC) Silk Center Building 10F, 1 Yamashita-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama Tel: 045-228-9713 <Supplementary Materials> (brand logo) The design features the blue of the sky and sea, the purple and green of grapes, and seagulls, and is named "Hama Wine," loved by the people of Hama. (access) Suzuki Building 1F, 1-3-12 Shinyamashita, Naka-ku, Yokohama TEL:045-228-9713 Email: ask@yokohamawinery.com Web: http://yokohamawinery.com (Business days and hours are currently being adjusted) 3 minutes walk from Motomachi exit of Motomachi-Chukagai Station on the Minatomirai Line (Products released on Friday, December 8th) Left: "Bashamichi" 11% alcohol. 100% Kyoho grapes from Nakano City, Nagano Prefecture. Nakano City is the fruit kingdom of Nagano. We collected second-ripened Kyoho grapes from multiple producers. Enjoy the vivid color and Kyoho aroma produced by the skin contact method. Right: "Minatomirai" 9.6% alcohol. 100% Delaware from Motosawa, Yamagata. A dry wine made by blending sour green Delaware from Motosawa, Yamagata with ripe Delaware. The producers are young people who are working hard to revive vineyards that are being abandoned. We put our heart into this wine, hoping to pass on their passion to the future.