https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2023/07/09/food/iwanohara-vineyard-niigata-joestu/ [japantimes] It looks like you're using an ad blocker. To enjoy our content, please include The Japan Times on your ad-blocker's list of approved sites. Thank you for supporting our journalism. * * HOME DELIVERY | * SUBSCRIBE | * Login * My Account * * * weather icon 27 P/CLOUDY TOKYO (4 a.m.) TODAY'S PRINT EDITION The Japan Times The Japan Times * Login * SUBSCRIBE * My Account * HOME DELIVERY [?] * (FREE ARTICLE) * * MENU * Search * News * Opinion * Life * Community * Culture * Sports * City Guide * Support * Search Search [ ] [Search] * Travel * Digital * Food & Drink * Environment * Style & Design * Language * Lifestyle * People * Multimedia * News + National + World + Business + Asia Pacific + Reference + Columns + Multimedia * Opinion + Editorials + Commentary + Cartoons * Life + Travel + Digital + Food & Drink + Environment + Style & Design + Language + Lifestyle + People + Columns + Multimedia * Community + Voices + Issues + Our Lives + Event listings + How-tos + Columns * Culture + Film + Music + Art + Stage + Events + Festivals + Books + TV + Columns + Multimedia * Sports + Rugby + Baseball + Soccer + Basketball + Sumo + Figure Skating + Tennis + More Sports + Columns + Multimedia * City Guide + Restaurants + Places * Support + About us + Faqs Food & Drink At Japan's first winery, the country's oldest grape lives on Sorry, but your browser needs Javascript to use this site. If you're not sure how to activate it, please refer to this site: https:// www.enable-javascript.com/ * It should come as no surprise that after more than a century of winemaking, Iwanohara has accumulated its fair share of accolades. | SAMANTHA MYTHEN It should come as no surprise that after more than a century of winemaking, Iwanohara has accumulated its fair share of accolades. | SAMANTHA MYTHEN * by Samantha Mythen * Contributing writer * * SHARE + Twitter + Facebook + LinkedIn + Email + Print Jul 9, 2023 * Kitagata, Niigata Pref. - Genki Wada has spent his morning meticulously searching for komoriga -- tiny insects that burrow deep into grape vines. Carefully, the chief viticulture engineer of Iwanohara Vineyard, Japan's oldest operating winery, inspects each of the 5,500 grape vines that make up Iwanohara's six hectares in Kitagata, Niigata Prefecture. So far, Wada has found three bugs after two hours of work. The midday sun beats down, and beads of sweat pool on his neck. Iwanohara focuses on using as few pesticides as possible, an approach that means Wada is using a handmade tool to dig out any insects he finds. Unable to view this article? This could be due to a conflict with your ad-blocking or security software. Please add japantimes.co.jp and piano.io to your list of allowed sites. If this does not resolve the issue or you are unable to add the domains to your allowlist, please see this FAQ. We humbly apologize for the inconvenience. KEYWORDS Niigata, Wine, sake, Tourism, alcohol, rural life * It should come as no surprise that after more than a century of winemaking, Iwanohara has accumulated its fair share of accolades. | SAMANTHA MYTHEN * Genki Wada, Iwanohara's chief viticulture engineer, joined the team in Niigata from July 2022 after a stint at the Suntory Tominooka Winery in Yamanashi Prefecture. | SAMANTHA MYTHEN * Usually, Iwanohara produces 500,000 bottles of wine are from 60 to 80 tons of harvested grapes. | SAMANTHA MYTHEN * Wada shows off the manual bug-catching tool used to clean Iwanohara's vines. | SAMANTHA MYTHEN * * * In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right. SUBSCRIBE NOW With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page. 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