News Release
- No.14617(2024/6/20)
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SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi Koshu 2022 wins Best in Show at Decanter World Wine Awards 2024
- Awarded to only top 50 wines out of more than 18,000 entries -
- First time for a Japanese wine to win the ultimate accolade –
Tokyo, JAPAN (June 20, 2024) - Suntory Spirits, a global leading beverage company with iconic brands such as Japanese whiskies Yamazaki, Hibiki and Hakushu, is proud to announce that its Japanese wine SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi Koshu 2022*1 won Best in Show at Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) 2024, an award given to the finest wines of DWWA. This is the first Japanese wine ever to receive this ultimate accolade.
From the SUNTORY FROM FARM series, Tomi no Oka Koshu 2022*2 won Gold, along with White of Japan Koshu 2021*3, White of Japan Koshu 2022*4, and Tsugaru Brut Chardonnay - Pinot Noir 2019*5 awarded Silver.
Now in its 21st year, DWWA was established in 2004 by the world’s leading UK wine media brand Decanter, published in approximately 100 countries around the world from 1975. With more than 10,000 wines submitted each year, it is one of the world’s largest and most influential wine competition acclaimed for its rigorous judging process with wines evaluated by top wine experts from across the globe.
This year, 18,143 wines applied for DWWA, and out of all entries, 50 were awarded Best in Show and 643 received Gold. As for Best in Show, SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi Koshu 2022 is the first Japanese wine ever to receive this honor. The company considers this result to be a significant recognition of the quality and commitment it has pursued in its winemaking.
Last month, SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi Koshu 2022 also won the gold medal at 2024 International Wine and Spirits Competition.
“Launching wine made from 100% Koshu grape from our flagship brand Tomi has been a long-held dream of all the craftsmen and members involved in our wine business,” shares Keiko Yoshio, Managing Executive Officer, Division COO of Wine Brand Division at Suntory Spirits. “It is very delighting that this first vintage of SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi Koshu received Best in Show at DWWA 2024, following the gold medal at IWSC 2024. Our goal has been to create high quality Koshu grape wines that has Japanese-like originality which inspires people around the world. We are truly proud that the longstanding challenge from the past seniors to our current team has borne fruit.”
<Tasting Notes of SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi Koshu 2022>
SUNTORY FROM FARM Tomi Koshu 2022 is the first vintage from the company’s flagship Japanese wine brand Tomi made from 100% Koshu, a grape variety indigenous to Japan.
It has a distinctive aroma of juicy fruits such as melon, yellow peach and Japanese mandarin orange with a hint of yellow flowers and honey on the nose. Together with mild acidity and a bittersweet aftertaste, this dry white wine expresses the concentrated rich flavor and elegant structure.
<Initiatives towards developing grape variety Koshu>
Under the philosophy of “Fine wine comes from fine grapes”, the company has been concentrating on growing fine wine grapes and producing high quality wine, by confronting the Japanese terroir for more than 100 years and evolving its cultivation and brewing technology. In 2022, a new brand series SUNTORY FROM FARM was established with the concept “FROM FARM”, meaning “everything starts from the vineyard”, which is reflected in the brand name. With its attention to detail and commitment to high quality, the company has been producing its wine by dedicating to produce fine wine grapes from unique terroirs of Japan.
Koshu is a grape variety native to Japan as defined by the International Organisation of Vine and Wine. It is a wine grape that represents Japan, characterized by an elegant aroma of Japanese citrus fruits. The company aims to develop Koshu to a wine grape that is acclaimed and loved around the world.
The company will expand the cultivation area at SUNTORY TOMI NO OKA WINERY and other company-owned vineyards so that more customers and consumers can enjoy Koshu wine. In order to produce Koshu grapes that achieves the desired wine flavor, the company will further its commitment to enhance its quality, such as by improving the cultivation environment and methods, and selecting only fully ripe bunches at harvest time.
Learn more about SUNTORY FROM FARM here, and about Suntory’s Wine Business here.
*1: Limited amount to be sold in Japan mainly at SUNTORY TOMI NO OKA WINERY and official EC website SUNTORY FROM FARM Online Shop from 10th September 2024
*2: To be launched in Japan from 10th September 2024
*3: Available in Japan
*4: To be launched in Japan in 2025
*5: Mainly available at SUNTORY TOMI NO OKA WINERY and official EC website SUNTORY FROM FARM Online Shop
About Suntory Group
As a global leader in the beverage industry, Suntory Group offers a uniquely diverse portfolio of products, from premium spirits, beer, wine, ready-to-drink alcohol beverages, to brewed teas, bottled water, still and carbonated soft drinks, ready-to-drink coffee and energy drinks, along with health and wellness products. Suntory is home to award-winning Japanese whiskies Yamazaki, Hibiki and Hakushu, as well as iconic American spirits Jim Beam and Maker's Mark. Suntory also fascinates the taste buds with The Premium Malt's beer, and owns the exceptional Japanese wine, Tomi, and the world-famous Château Lagrange. Its brand collection includes Sauza Tequila, non-alcoholic favorites Orangina, Lucozade, Ribena, BOSS coffee, Iyemon green tea, Suntory Tennensui water, TEA+ Oolong Tea, V and BRAND’S, as well as popular health and wellness product Sesamin EX.
Founded as a family-owned business in 1899 in Osaka, Japan, Suntory Group has grown into a global company operating throughout the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia and Oceania, with an annual revenue (excluding excise taxes) of $20.9 billion in 2023. Its 41,511 employees worldwide draw upon the unique blend of Japanese artisanship and global tastes to explore new product categories and markets.
As a corporation sustained by the gifts of nature and water, Suntory Group will always protect the ecosystems that deliver water. Because its ecosystem is the wellspring, not only of its business and the rich experiences the group creates for people's lives, but also of human life itself. Suntory Group will continue to be a company where everyone is empowered with the freedom and flexibility to innovate. Through all of its corporate pursuits, Suntory seeks to inspire the brilliance of life.
Learn more about Suntory Group, its brands, and its commitment to social responsibility and sustainability at www.suntory.com, on Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
