5 minutes with... Nick Rowan, founder of Wine Fogg and author of Japanese Wine
Published: 24 February, 2026
Japanese wine expert Nick Rowan encourages people to explore the full spectrum of the country’s wines and regions.
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Koshu: Putting Japanese wine on the map
Published: 21 January, 2026
Even within the UK wine trade, mention that you are off to Japan to learn more about the wines, and the comment comes back, ‘oh, rice wine, you mean sake?’. But with sake now firmly established on fine dining wine lists across Britain, a group of wine producers from Yamanashi Prefecture – the heartland of the indigenous white Koshu grape variety – believe that the time is ideal for a greater push for recognition in the ‘global shop window’ that is the UK. And with the wines ticking many on-trend boxes, being fresh and elegant, with naturally modest alcohol and just a soupçon of the exotic born of Japan origin, their food-friendly nature completes a picture of natural affinity with modern wine mores.
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Sake’s steady but certain rise
Published: 24 September, 2025
I recently read that the UK is on the verge of a sake boom. The trade press article reported “a healthy increase in popularity”, with the St James’s wine merchant Berry Bros & Rudd noting “a 1,000% increase in sales between 2023 and 2024” and “heaps of coverage in the press”. Normally sake gets next to no coverage in the press so this was news to me. I thought then that I should check and see if there really is a breakthrough, or if, like previous claims for Riesling or Muscat, the hype outweighs the evidence.
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Mangrove expands Japanese whisky offering with Togouchi
Published: 24 April, 2025
UK spirits distributor Mangrove Global has announced the addition of whisky producer Togouchi to its portfolio. The onboarding will see Mangrove’s Japanese whisky ranks swell from two – Akashi and Yamazakura being the existing brands – to three.
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Japanese whisky adopts new logo in GI status push
Published: 28 March, 2025
The Japan Spirits & Liqueurs Makers Association (JSLMA) has announced the adoption of a new logo to reinforce its industry standards regarding whisky production, first established in February 2021.
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London Wine Fair buoyed by alternative territories growth
Published: 18 February, 2025
The 2025 London Wine Fair will see larger stalls from emerging wine-regions including a doubling in size of Chinese exhibitors’ stalls. Exhibitors from Japan, Romania and Serbia will be in also be attendance at the May event.
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Japanese sake exports grow by 6% globally
Published: 10 February, 2025
Sake exports grew by +6% year on year for 2024 compared to the year prior, with the export value reaching 43.5bn yen (approximately £230mn) with 3.45mn cases of the rice wine reaching a record 80 countries and regions.
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New Sake launch coincides with UNESCO 'Intangible Cultural Heritage' award
Published: 09 December, 2024
Aumont Brewery, a leading firm based in the province of Niigata, has unveiled a new brand of Japanese rice wine called Kay Sake.
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British alcohol sales rise in CPTPP countries
Published: 04 January, 2024
Sales of British alcohol products such as English sparkling and Scotch whisky are on the rise in the Indo-Pacific region, the UK government has announced.
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Rathfinny consolidates Asia Pacific foothold
Published: 31 August, 2023
Rathfinny Estate has announced a new partnership with leading Japanese importer Vin Passion, extending the producer’s reach in the Asia-Pacific region.
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English wine exports double
Published: 08 September, 2020
Exports of English wine more than doubled in 2019 while sales overall rocketed 70%, according to the latest data from Wine GB released today.
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Friday Read: Ten years of Koshu
Published: 14 February, 2020
Koshu was virtually unknown in the UK a decade ago when the Koshu of Japan promotion began. Jo Gilbert looks at the rise of a distinctively eastern wine in a western market
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Weeklong celebration of Japanese exports heads to London
Published: 16 September, 2019
Japan Week is launching in London next week, giving a spotlight to the uptick of Japanese wines, spirits and sakes across the capital.
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Alcohol sales fall worldwide, but with recovery to follow, predicts the IWSR
Published: 31 May, 2019
Global alcohol consumption fell back by 1.6% in 2018, according to new data from the IWSR, with some 27.6 billion nine-litre cases being consumed.
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Japan: ready to launch
Published: 13 March, 2019
Thanks to two key trade deals, Japan has increased its reach to a billion people so far in 2019. Jo Gilbert looks at the knock-on effect for the country’s drinkable exports
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Wines of Japan: Harpers takes a closer look at what the country has to offer
Published: 08 November, 2018
Japan has had a boost in winemaking productivity over the past decade, particularly among smaller, artisanal producers who are now leading the charge for quality and innovation. We took a closer look at a country which is focusing outwards on growing its reputation and inwards on winemaking expertise.
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Japan prepares to take on the world at second Wines of Japan tasting
Published: 07 November, 2018
As Japan continues to make waves in whisky, pushing outwards with its own distinctive style and winning awards left, right and centre, wine is poised to follow suit. Harpers joined Sarah Abbott MW at a recent Wines of Japan tasting – the follow-up to the inaugural UK event in February this year. We discovered a country ready to build on the newly signed free trade deal with Europe and take on the wine world.
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Chile hits the spot with Japanese wine drinkers as they switch from Old to New World
Published: 05 September, 2018
The notion that wine consumption in Japan is primarily limited to Old World countries has shifted with research revealing a clear focus on the New World.
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Major sake festival pins down first date in London
Published: 23 July, 2018
The Joy of Sake, the world’s largest sake celebration outside Japan, has announced the date of its first-ever London date.
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