Grace Wine

Grace Wine was founded in September 1923 by Chotaro Misawa in Katsunuma, Yamanashi. Over the century since, five generations of the Misawa family have dedicated themselves to the Koshu grape and to the conviction that great wine is made in the vineyard. The third generation, Kazuo Misawa, established Chuo Budoshu Co., Ltd. and launched the Grace brand in the 1950s. The fourth generation, Shigekazu Misawa, expanded the estate's ambitions dramatically: establishing the 12-hectare Misawa Vineyard at 700 metres altitude in Akeno, the site with the longest sunshine hours in Japan, pioneering the export of Koshu to Europe, and co-founding Koshu of Japan (KOJ), an organisation of 15 Yamanashi wineries dedicated to international promotion. He was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays for his contributions to Japanese wine.

Today, fifth-generation winemaker Ayana Misawa leads the winemaking. Trained in oenology, she gained international experience at wineries in France, South Africa, Chile, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand before returning to the family estate. Under her direction, Grace Wine became the first Japanese winery to win a Gold Medal at the Decanter World Wine Awards, in 2014, with the Cuvée Misawa Akeno Koshu 2013. They followed with Gold Medals for six consecutive years. In 2016, their Grace Extra Brut became the first Asian sparkling wine to win the Platinum Award and Best of Asia at the same competition.

Grace Wine's Koshu wines, grown across several distinct vineyard sites including Hishiyama (500–600m, granite and gravelly clay), Toriibira, and Kayagatake, are celebrated for their balance, finesse, and crystalline purity. The estate was among the first in Japan to introduce Vertical Shoot Positioning for Koshu, a European training method that concentrates flavour by reducing berry size and increasing sugar content. At the Misawa Vineyard, neither herbicides nor chemical fertilizers are used.

While Koshu remains the cornerstone, Grace Wine also produces reds from Bordeaux varieties, a rosé, and sparkling wines. The origin of the "Grace" name itself comes from the three graces of Greek mythology, chosen to evoke the elegance and dignity that the Misawa family sees in the Koshu grape.