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株式会社 La Perle
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A mix of white and black grape clusters

A vineyard opened below Mount Asama.

La Perle means pearl in French. After learning to grow and make wine in Alsace, Mariko Kawasaki came back and opened this vineyard on the hillside.

Donations & sponsorshipThe ownership project

WINEGROWERThe winegrower

The winegrower standing in front of stainless steel tanks

Mariko Kawasaki

Si Rose, made by Christian Binner in Alsace, is the wine that drew her into winemaking. She learned to grow and to make wine at Domaine Oyamada in Katsunuma, and in 2019 began growing grapes and making wine at Mimakigahara in Komoro.

What she is after is concentrated wine in which the site and the fruit can be felt. She keeps the bunches small and the vines from running to vigour. The vineyard is farmed organically, and the grass is cut only when it needs cutting. The trellis is built to her own frame, so that leaf area and the work of tending it can both be had.

Before this she taught corporate training courses and worked in media, and she carries that over: telling people, in plain terms, what lies behind the vineyard and the wine.

VINEYARDThe vineyard

  • A young vine and its roots held in one hand, the winter vineyard beyond

    Planting

  • Hands fitting a paper cap over a young bunch of grapes

    Kasakake

  • The winegrower reaching up into the summer canopy

    Summer pruning

  • A vine trunk bored into by ghost moth larvae, the entry hole visible

    Pest control

  • An end post with its anchor wire, roses flowering at its foot

    Trellising

  • The red speed sprayer parked in the vineyard

    Bordeaux spray

POLICYHow we work

Ripening bunches of grapes on the vine

Trusting the fruit and the site, and keeping what the year gives

Growing | Winemaking The smallest amount of spray and additive the Symbiose standard allows, for wine that speaks of this place and this year.

WINESThe wines

We do not sell online at present.

HISTORYThe path so far

From Alsace to a hillside in Komoro

  1. 2015

    Learned winemaking at Domaine Christian Binner in Alsace, France, taking in both viticulture and cellar work.

  2. 2019

    Moved to Komoro. Began training in Japanese viticulture and winemaking at Domaine Oyamada in Katsunuma, Yamanashi, while acquiring and clearing her own plot and planting vines.

  3. 2022

    Began making wine without added sulphur under a contract arrangement, launching the Domaine La Perle label.

  4. 2026

    Working with around 40 wine merchants and restaurants nationwide. Incorporated Domaine La Perle and began preparing to build a winery.

SOCIALThe vineyard, day to day

The vineyard year, on Instagram

Budbreak, the paper caps, harvest, the cellar. This is where the days go up.

ACTIVITIESTwo further projects