Los Angeles, CA – The Drops of God Wine Salon is set to debut in the United States this month, with launch events occurring in the Napa Valley and Beverly Hills.
Born from the manga series, The Drops of God, created by siblings Shin and Yuko Kibayashi, this game-changing wine salon provides for fans of the manga and wine, a thread between the old world benchmarks first pursued by protagonist, Shizuku Kanzaki, and the wines soon to be offered to salon members. Curated by Shin and Yuko Kibayashi, the artful wines offered to members share much in common with old world benchmarks. “We will be applying the same principals for the exploration of American wines we shared in the manga: Heaven, Earth, Man and Marriage,” the siblings said. In The Drops of God, Heaven represents the weather, and is a direct reference to the climate of a given geographical area. Earth refers to terroir, or soil and viticultural/cultural practices and conditions. Man refers to winemaking and cellar practices, while Marriage refers to the marriage of wine and food.
Focusing on wines that are inherently balanced, are still touched by the hand of the winemaker and that pair well with food and wine, the siblings will be vetting the wines themselves. To date, winery partners include producers Ashes & Diamonds, Calera, Failla, Matthiasson, Massican, Noria, Kanpai, Marietta, and Scribe. “Drops of God is part of a long tradition of artistry and craftsmanship in visual storytelling, and in turn it recognizes these virtues in the wines that it folds into its stories,” says winemaker Steve Matthiasson of Matthiasson. “It is a great honor for us to participate in this process; for our work with the soil and the vines to take on another life through story, plot and drama. The magic of wine is that it is as much a story as it is a beverage: a marriage of place, process, and people. Drops of God celebrates this magic.”
“When I first read the original Drops of God series it brought me great joy to see wine translated to the pages of a comic book with such incredible creativity and storytelling. I was hooked. And to have Massican contribute to the next iteration of the series, I am not only honored but also flabbergasted that my table-friendly white wine from Napa Valley could be recognized as worthy! I do hope I don’t let anyone down!” says Dan Petroski, winemaker and owner of Massican.
The Drops of God Wine Salon encourages members to be more confident about their tastes and preferences, as each shipment of wines is to be tasted blind first, utilizing the co-branded Drops of God Wine Salon WineGame app. Created by Chef José Andrés (The Bazaar in Los Angeles), Rob Wilder, (co-founder,ThinkFoodGroup) and Gary Mendel (co-Founder and COO) WineGame is a simple app that that turns any bottle of wine into a multiple-choice blind tasting game. WineGame launched in 2018 and was inspired by Andrés and Wilder’s on-going (and lively) blind tasting game they played with sommeliers and restaurateurs for years.
“Our mission is simple: we want our members to create lasting memories through food and wine,” said Peter Chiang, President of Bijou USA and Vice President of Bijou Japan, the global joint venture established with the Kibayashi’s to better serve salon members in the United States, Japan and Taiwan, among other nations. “Today, I’m enjoying wines I wouldn’t have appreciated even five years ago. Once you develop a love and appreciation for wine, you find that you’ve embarked on a life-long adventure, during which one’s palate evolves and pleasures deepen,” says Chiang. “The Drops of God Wine Salon was built to grow with the wine consumer. We want salon members to remain engaged and excited about exploring the world of wine. Wine tasting should be an art that engages the right side of the brain; the infinitely creative side of ourselves that is attracted to the arts. We hope that our members not only enjoy the taste and aromas of the wines they explore, but also create lasting memories around those wines by sharing them with friends and family, in a relaxed setting, over a great meal. We wanted blind tasting to be an integral part of our salon, as we want members to feel confident in their own palates, irrespective of scores, reviews or labels.”
Scot Bilbro, winemaker of Marietta, says, “My dad taught me to trust my instincts…..To listen to the fields, the landscape, and enjoy the hard work and attention to detail necessary to shepherd a wine through the cellar. To trust myself as I take all the experiences and beauty and capture them in the immersive joy of a new wine. On a daily basis, I get to connect to land, family, and heritage… and create something from it to share with people all across the world. Drops of God beautifully portrays what we hope for as winemakers: that someone out there can experience our story and feel all of our own life that we put into our wines. That people out there in the world love what we make as much as we do.”
Potential salon members can learn more about The Drops of God Wine Salon during their debut launch events, taking place later this month. Attendees will receive a rare, sneak-peek into the salon’s unique culture, which includes education, fun and game play. During each fête, guests will be encouraged to have fun and relax while discovering new wines paired with bites specifically tailored to the featured wines. During the launch event, some lucky attendees will be able to test their blind-tasting skills and learn about The Drops of God Salon wines along the way. Finalists will have an opportunity to play against wine luminaries and win prizes including rare wines featured in the series. Salon members can expect similar events occurring in the future, with pop-up mini-festivals, highlighting game play, fun and education being an on-going part of salon culture.
The word “salon” is in direct reference to the philosophical salons of 17th and 18th century Europe where people from all walks of life would gather under the roof of an inspiring host, to amuse one another and to refine the taste and increase the knowledge of the participants through interaction. In addition to the online wine salon, the physical events in October aim to bring to life the wine salon spirit.
The three debut events will take place between October 19th and the 21st and include the following venues: Kanpai Winery (Napa Valley), Ad Hoc (Yountville), and The Bazaar (Beverly Hills). To learn more about the Drops of God Wine Salon, and to purchase tickets to an event in your area, please visit www.dropsofgodwinesalon.com.
