Riesling Fellows Japan

Eisaku Kurokawa is the president of the Japanese import company Fushimi Wines. His dedication for German wine is strongly connected with his commitment to develop the German Wine Association in Japan, of which he has been the secretary general for many years.

In 1979, he participated at the German Wine Academy organized by the German Wine Institute. The impressive tour in Germany motivated him and other participants to found, in 1983, the German Wine Association Japan, with Mr. Mamoru Koga as chairman. They first started educational activities to spread the knowledge of German wine in Japan. In 1986, they launched the first German wine contest with the support of winegrowers from the Mosel and Rheinland-Pfalz, at which wine connoisseurs could demonstrate their knowledge of German wine.

After its successful introduction, the contest was soon expanded to 14 cities from the north to the south of Japan and from 2002, awarded contestants who passed the exam the title of German Weinkenner.

Since 1991, they have organised German Wine Festivals and other tasting events across Japan and established April 28th as “German Wine Day” in Japan. Eisaku Kurokawa has played an enormous role in the development of a positive image of German wine in Japan and is still active as a consultant of the German Wine Association Japan and continues to enlighten and spread the word on German wine.

Katsuyuki Tanaka, journalist was born in Tokyo in 1962. After working as an assistant director of marketing department of a major restaurant company based in Tokyo and a director of a restaurant & food service company based in New York, he joined Winart magazine when it was launched in 97 as a chief writer, and stayed there for 10 years. In 2007 he dedicated the first issue of the Wine-Not!? Magazine as a chief writer his favorite grape varieties Riesling and Spätburgunder. Additionally, he has been teaching Wine and Christian Culture at Bunkyo Gakuin University for 7 years and published two books on wine.

Today he is overheading the new web magazine Wine Communicate, writes for several publications, and gives seminars for both amateurs and professionals. He also shares his deep knowledge of wine with several companies as consultant.

He is one of the most important wine critics in Japan and knows German wine and specially Riesling in all its facets.

Japanese importer Herrenberger Hof was founded 1982 in Kobe. In 1995 the company had to move to Osaka after a powerful earthquake struck. Herrenberger Hof also opened a branch in Tokyo which now operates as a successful business.

In 1996, the company started to focus mainly on German brands.

Hisashi Yamano (deceased December 23rd 2021) built up the company with a lot of dedication. In 2000 he spent a year at Weingut Huber in Baden, becoming an expert in winemaking and German wine in particular.

His son, Takahiro Yamano also spent three years as an apprentice in Germany with various producers including Bernhard Huber and Georg Breuer between 2001 and 2003. Today he leads Herrenberger Hof with more than 50 German wineries in its portfolio.

Takahiro’s dedication for Riesling saw him form the “Riesling Ring” with other wine experts in Japan in 2009. The “Riesling Ring” organises annual grand Riesling events as well as restaurant and retail promotion – the “Summer of Riesling” – in cooperation with Paul Grieco, Riesling Fellow from the United States.