Healthier wine? Three times more resveratrol in Mercian's new Bon Rouge grape wine
Resveratrol is present in grapes skins, some studies have shown that it produces antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.
The new product, known as “Bon Rouge Premium PET Bottle Red” that came with an alcohol level of 11%, was launched on a limited quantity basis on August 28.
Every 100ml of the wine contains 1.2 mg of resveratrol.
The firm hoped to “bring new health function value to customers” through the launch of the new product, Toshiaki Hyodo, a spokesman from Kirin said in response to FoodNavigator’s queries.
The company had conducted research on resveratrol for more than 20 years since launching the Bon Rouge series in 1996.
He added that consumers were seeking for “good quality and value-added” wine products.
“There is the polarisation of luxury and savings-oriented consumers…Even though the prices (of wine) are high, there are still signs of growth seen,” he said.
Wine market
The Japanese still wine market is declining in terms of the total volume of wine sold in the market, following years of growth, according to Wine Intelligence’s Japan Landscapes report 2018.
“Per capita consumption of wine in Japan remains relatively small at 3L per capita per year, with the per capita consumption of wine experiencing approximately a 2% decrease from 2016 to 2017,” it said.
Just two years ago in 2016, Japan’s National Tax Agency noted that the taxable volume of wine and other fruit wines had been rising due to increased home consumption and growing number of new wineries.
Taxable volume refers to the volume of liquor shipped from a factory on which a liquor tax was imposed.
It also highlighted that “Japan wines,” which must be 100% made from grapes grew in Japan, are prized for their high quality, and had won prizes at international competitions.
The main wine making regions in Japan are located in Yamanashi, Nagano, Yamagata and Hokkaido.
