“I look for wines that tell a story”: Languedoc wines tasted as far away as Japan

Nami Naruse, directrice de développement de Wine Curation, venue du Japon. MIDI LIBRE – Y. PO.

As part of a business convention on the sidelines of Millésime bio, the show which was held at the beginning of the week, there was a lot of talk about export. Nami Naruse is a buyer from the land of the rising sun and explains the wines she came to buy. 

The world's leading organic wine show, the Millésime Bio show, which was held at the start of the week at the exhibition center, was the ideal place to sell Occitanie wines for export. A business convention, organized by the Occitanie economic development agency Ad’Occ, allowed 42 selected buyers to meet more than 80 organic wine producers in the region. 350 meetings were organized over two days.

Nami Naruse is one of them. Director of product development at Wine Curation, she came from Japan to find "wines that tell a story that will touch the hearts of the Japanese”. His company weighs 3 million bottles and sources its supplies from 80 suppliers, 45% of whom are French.

Japan is the most important Asian country for export

Wine Curation sells mainly through e-commerce (70%) but also to major retailers and wine merchants in Japan (20%) as well as to hotels and restaurants in the land of the rising sun. According to Catherine Machabert, head of wine markets at Ad’Occ, “Japan is the region's most important Asian market for organic wines. But as for all international buyers, it is the sale price that is the main criterion.

Nami Naruse is also interested in wines well rated in French guides and magazines. She considers less "the specificity of terroirs" because they are illegible for the Japanese consumer.

"Find at least three new producers"

For the moment, organic wine is not yet Wine Curation's core market. Barely 2% of its sales: "But I am present at the show to increase this ratio", assures Nami Naruse with a broad smile. She has seven meetings with local winegrowers and has set a goal "to find at least three producers to buy their wine".

In Japan, organic is a growing market. "Consumers are willing to pay more for wine if it is organic”, assures Nami Naruse. But it is necessary to harmonize the different specifications with the standards of the European Union. Essential administrative work so that the products benefit from organic farming recognition and so that the organic wines of Languedoc can tell their story in the land of the rising sun.