by Ned Goodwin
Although availability remains limited and is often an issue of confusion, Japanese consumers are showing increasing interest in organic products, including wine,. Since 2001, foods and beverages must meet the requirements of the Japan Agricultural
Standards (JAS) law to be certified as organic in Japan. American producers can arrange to be certified in the United States under the USDA s organic program, which is recognized by JAS. As for imported alcoholic beverages, the Japanese government recognizes the organic standards of certain countries, including the United States and France. Despite the new JAS organic standards, some importers complain that the rules are ambiguous and fail to meet consumer needs.
James Dunstan of Tokyo`s niche Rhone importer, The Vine, notes the confusion between what is touted as bio , an abbreviation for biologique or organic, and biodynamique . Many consumers think they are getting one ilk of wine when it is nothing of the sort. Worse, Dunstan notes, many so-called bio wines are not only organic, but of the radical movement, vin naturel. This movement espouses minimal sulphur-dioxide additions to the point of risqué and, some would say, irresponsible winemaking. Such wines have often refermented in the bottle and become hazy and aldehydic by the time they arrive in the country. Dunstan argues that in a country with stagnant consumption levels, better rather than faulty wine is needed.
This being said, Tokyo`s high-end Toukyu department store has recently created an ambiguous section named Natural Wines. There seems, however, to be little logic behind the idea. The section displays multifarious styles: some organic, some sans souffre and others merely commercial. It would seem that nature and all that it implies appeals to a land without much of it - irrespective of the wine at hand.
