A Tokyo company hopes the discovery of wine aging in an underwater cellar in Kagoshima Prefecture, near Amami Oshima Island, will help boost the local economy. Kyodo News.
This is a widespread practice around the world, as underwater conditions — that is, relatively constant and cool temperatures, as well as higher pressure and weaker light conditions — are suitable for aging wine, they write.
However, this procedure is rarely used in Japan
said Yui Moritani, president of Tokyo Public Relations Company, which initiated the project.
At the end of January, about 500 bottles of wine from Europe were lowered to the seabed in stainless steel cages, at a depth of about 20 metres, near the town of Setoci in the southern part of the island.
Most bottles sunk in January are left at sea until June, then served to guests of a local restaurant in July. Some are left at the bottom, in an attempt to get the aging time right for optimal flavour.
The water in this area is warmer than the typical temperature for old wine, said one diver who took wine bottles to the sea floor. On January 30, the temperature was measured at 21 degrees Celsius, but the advantage is that the wine matures faster in such conditions. According to him, the biggest challenge is whether the wine will survive the summer in warm water.
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