Japanese wine match for Japanese cuisine. is a red wine grape hybrid developed by (1868–1944) at the in Niigata Prefecture. Kawakami's goal was to develop a grape for wine adapted to Japan's climate. He did this by mixing the type grape with "Muscat Hamburg" type grape to give birth to a red wine grape that is widely used in Japan. Also developed by Kawakami was the variety known as . The characteristics of Muscat Bailey-A are a very grape juice-like flavor and it is most widely used in sweet amakuchi wines. However, in recent years, drier varieties and barrel aged varieties have
Mirin Mirin Three types of "mirin" are common. The first is "hon mirin" (literally: true "mirin"), which contains about 14% alcohol and is produced by a 40- to 60-day mashing (saccharification) process. The second is "shio mirin", which contains alcohol as low as 1.5% to avoid alcohol tax. The third is "shin mirin" (literally: new "mirin"), or "mirin-fu chomiryo" (literally: mirin-like seasoning), which contains less than 1% alcohol, yet retains the same flavor. In the Edo period, "mirin" was consumed as "amazake". O-toso, traditionally consumed on Shōgatsu, can be made by soaking a spice mixture in "mirin". In the Kansai style