Japanese Winemaker

Takaki Okada is an unusual sight in the winemaking region of Marlborough, New Zealand, where he is a Japanese winemaker/owner of the boutique Folium Wines. He bought his 8.5 hectare property in the Brancott subregion in 2011, and as a small producer, tried to differentiate himself by dry-growing his vines instead of irrigating them. After trial and error over the next few years which saw his yields dropping, he developed unique methods such as experimenting with wild yeast fermentations. The grapes are also harvested by hand and de-stemmed. The wine is also pressed to French oak, resulting in Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir with a distinctive personality.

Mr Okada will be in town to showcase his wines as part of an omakase menu created by sushi chef Hatch Hashida at his newly-opened restaurant in Mohd Sultan. The one-night only event is on Dec 8.

For reservations at Hashida & Folium Wines, call 8428-8787