Wada spent his childhood in a small country town in Okayama Prefecture and has grown surrounded by delicious fruits. Since a child, he has been fond of creating and growing things. When he was in primary school, he was growing fruit trees in his family garden. He majored in Pomology at university and explored the potential of fruits. After his graduate, he joined a leading jam company, wanting to learn about fruits in the world. When he was deeply impressed by the beauty of grape fields in Chile where he was visiting to procure fruit ingredients, he decided to change jobs. Since his joining our team, he has been honing his skills by actively visiting experienced farmers growing grapes for wine, even on his off days.

Mr.Wada, browned by the sun, appeared to be a tough, reliable grape grower. In the cultivation experience, I mainly did . Pinching mainly involves pinching off new buds. Doing this is effective in allowing nutrients that branches use to grow to go to grapes. In the Koshu grape field where the grapes are trained on hedging, I actually picked buds.

One by one I trimmed buds of the Koshu grapes trained on hedging arranged in rows. The hot and humid climate added extra fatigue and sweat rolled down all over my body. After just 10 minutes, I realized how hard it is to work in fields. However, at the same time, I was so deeply immersed in the natural environment in the field, I felt as if I was in special space where I forgot about the passing of time. Biodiversity cannot be experienced in an urban living. Every time I visit Tomi No Oka Winery, I feel it is such a special place where great wine is produced.

After the pinching work, I moved on to umbrella hanging. This is a very unique work in Japanese grape fields. This is often seen in peach farms and such. Japan has a lot of rain, so they drape a piece of special white paper over each cluster of grapes like an umbrella to protect them from rain. It looks easy but actually it was much more difficult than I had imagined and required a certain knack. I was unable to learn the knack during the short period of time and ended up with excruciating pain in my lower back.

I will try again next time. But, again you will never know how hard this work is until you actually do it yourself. When I saw them putting a paper shade over thousands of grape clusters with loving care, I felt Japanese work ethics of dedication and commitment to attention to detail. I believe their capability of handling work like this produces the elegant, deep and delicate taste of Japanese wine.

And lastly, I did thinning work. It is also called green harvest in English. Excess grapes are pruned to allow the remaining bunches to have a better chance of ripening fully to produce more concentrated grapes. This was how I understood it, but Mr.Wada says the effects of this manoeuvre still remain uncertain and he is earnestly working on it. On the day, he showed me the various data. He says that it does not necessarily produce good results, and therefore is gathering data and trying out every method/ technique on a daily basis so as to surely pass on the results of each approach he is now carrying out to the next generation.

Mr.Wada, with the spirit of true Japanese craftsmanship, is looking out 10 years, 20 years or even further into the future. It makes me feel that it is necessary to create a sustainable environment for the future of the wine industry. As Wada’s efforts are carried over to the next generation, I also think it is important on my part to enjoy and appreciate wine as a somlier. I will work to communicate ways to enjoy and appreciate wine to the younger generation.

Thank you very much for giving an opportunity to have a great cultivation experience!