16/09/2021
日本のナチュラルワイン? / Japanese natural wine?
Yes! And some of it is quite good. We first encountered Pump Up Rouge from at last year, when we tried the previous vintage. We couldn’t wait to try the 2020 release.
Nerd alert 🚨
WTF is carbonic maceration? Well, it’s technique applied to light to medium-bodied wines to make them fruitier and soften their tannins. Instead relying on natural or added yeasts for fermentation, the grapes are exposed to carbon dioxide which enables them to ferment from the inside out 🤓 This wine spends 3 weeks in carbonic maceration!
Ok fine, but malolactic fermentation?! This is common in red wines and some white wines, especially those that have a creamy, buttery quality, like some Chardonnays. Malic acid from grapes converts to lactic acid and carbon dioxide. This wine has only a hint of creaminess, but lots of CO2 bubbles. Caution when opening!
Pump Up ルージュ (Rouge) 2020 by Yellow Magic Winery
🎯: Yamagata, Japan (350 km north of Tokyo) 🇯🇵
🍇: Campbell (Concord-type grape)
🗒: Carbonic maceration for 3 weeks. Secondary fermentation (light malolactic) for 3 months.
🌡: 9% alcohol! 😮 Zero added sulfites or dosage!
👃: Muscadine grape, tart raspberry, faint champagne vinegar
👅: Dry, light-bodied, with a slight tannic bite. Bubble gum.
Why it’s interesting:
Easy-to-drink, low-alcohol reds – what’s not to love? A whole bottle has around the same amount of alcohol as a pint of strong beer. More please! Just be careful opening. Explosive!
If that’s not enough for you, crank up some Yellow Magic Orchestra (“Japanese Kraftwerk”) and see where this wine takes you ;)