Hurricane-kicking its way onto the wine scene in 2009 was a new brand, Kenzo Estate, owned by the CEO of video-game giant Capcom. Clearly playing to win, Kenzo Tsujimoto hired California's brightest wine talents to create a wine for the Japanese market that combines value for money with excellent quality. Made on his stunningly beautiful estate deep in the heart of California's Napa Valley, Kenzo Estate is a labor of love that took over a decade to come to fruition.
To find out more, I met up with Tsujimoto at Kenzo Estate Winery, his wine bar in Minami-Azabu. Despite being the head of an internationally successful company, known worldwide for game series such as "Street Fighter," "Resident Evil" and "Monster Hunter," when it comes to wine, Tsujimoto has a refreshing humility. Rather than impose his vision on the brand, he leaves the important decisions to his vineyard manager, David Abreu, and winemaker Heidi Barrett.
His choice is a wise one: Both Barrett and Abreu are responsible for some of California's most successful cult wines — Barrett's 1992 and '93 vintages of Screaming Eagle each earned 100 points from the notoriously hard to please palate of world-class wine guru Robert Parker. "If you're after the person who makes the best Californian wine, it's Heidi Barrett," Tsujimoto enthuses.