Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, February 24, 1992 TAG: 9202240164
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: MADISON LENGTH: Medium
VINTNERS TRY TO UNCORK JAPANESE
A Virginia winery has begun shipping its products to Japan, and other vintners are trying to tap into what could become a lucrative market."The Japanese have a taste for fine wine" and have bought French wines for years, said Alison King, spokeswoman for Prince Michel Vineyards in Madison County.
Through a Maryland-based export company, Prince Michel made its first shipment of 38 cases of its French-style Blanc de Michel, a light white wine, to Japan in October. A case of wine averages $60 wholesale, King said.
The winery was the first in the state to export its blush, chardonnay and premium red wines to Japan, and currently is shipping an order with a wholesale value of $10,000, she said.
The Virginia wines have sold out at Tokyo's Lungwood Hotel, King said. Sales at Isetan, an upscale department store, and the Tsunekawa supermarkets are also strong, she said.
Virginia's history is a good foreign marketing tool for wineries, said Annette Ringwood, wine marketing specialist with the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
"Virginia has such a historic heritage. People have such rich connotations of Virginia and its American history," Ringwood said. "The Japanese find Virginia a popular tourism destination. They carry that over with Virginia wines."
King said the state's winemaking tradition goes back to the days of Thomas Jefferson, who tended a vineyard at Monticello.
"He did try to grow grapes and didn't have much success," King said. "The technology wasn't that developed back then."
The state's wine industry has blossomed in the past two decades. Virginia's first winery was incorporated in 1975. Statewide, there are now 43 wineries and 110 vineyards that grow grapes for wine.
Because the domestic market is limited, foreign markets appear to offer an opportunity for Virginia wineries to substantially expand their business.
Prince Michel has an edge in its exporting efforts because it is Virginia's largest winemaker, and has the time and money to work on increasing its share of the Japanese market, Ringwood said.
But 11 other Virginia wineries also have the production capacity to export wines to Japan, she said.
Charlottesville's Oakencroft Vineyards is one producer trying to break into the Japanese market. Felicia Rogan, president and owner of Oakencroft, took along some of the winery's products when she accompanied Gov. Douglas Wilder on his trade mission to Japan last year.
Oakencroft's Carolyn Graves said the winery is preparing to send samples of blush, chardonnay and cabernet to Tokyo. Oakencroft has exported some of its wines to Taiwan but has not received reports on how they're selling, Graves said.
"Much more than half the battle is making your original sale. Just approaching buyers is a complicated matter. The ways of approaching them are quite different" than in the United States, said King, of Prince Michel.
The Japanese wine distribution system is complicated because there are various levels of wholesalers, which makes pricing and other practices different than in the United States, Ringwood said.
"But the Japanese don't have an active wine industry themselves, so there's no need to be restrictive, as in the case of TVs or cars," she said.
Officials estimate retail sales of Virginia wines in 1991 totaled $13.2 million, up from $10.6 million in 1990.