Yoichi-Nobori Rosé Comme Rouge 2023 | Takahiko Soga and Yoichi-Nobori

2026.08.19

Rosé comme Rouge — literally, “rosé like red.”

Yoichi-Nobori Rosé Comme Rouge 2023 is made by Takahiko Soga from grapes grown in the Nobori area of Yoichi, Hokkaido.

It is neither simply a light rosé nor an attempt to make a deeply coloured red wine.

Instead, it explores a style somewhere between the two — using grapes grown in Yoichi to give rosé the structure and presence more commonly associated with red wine.

Why the Label Says “Takahiko Soga”

Look closely at the bottle and the label reads “Takahiko Soga”, rather than “Domaine Takahiko.”

That distinction reflects how the wine is made.

The grapes do not come from Soga’s own Nana-Tsu-Mori vineyard. Instead, they are purchased from growers in the Nobori area of Yoichi and vinified by Soga himself.

Wines made from his estate-grown fruit are labelled “Domaine Takahiko Soga,” while those made from purchased grapes under the Yoichi-Nobori series carry simply “Takahiko Soga.”

The place is Yoichi-Nobori.

The grapes are grown by local farmers.

And Soga is responsible for turning them into wine.

That relationship is written directly onto the label.

Zweigelt at the Heart of the 2023 Vintage

The 2023 Rosé Comme Rouge is centred on Zweigelt, a red grape variety that has been cultivated in Hokkaido for many years.

Zweigelt can bring both vivid fruit and structure, making it particularly suited to a wine that deliberately blurs the line between rosé and red.

There is freshness and transparency, but also a sense of red fruit and underlying structure.

The name Rosé Comme Rouge is therefore more than a playful phrase.

It describes the position the wine occupies.

A Wine Shaped by Yoichi

Takahiko Soga established his domaine in the Nobori area of Yoichi, Hokkaido.

The region combines relatively mild conditions for Hokkaido with low rainfall and sloping vineyard sites. Snowfall also plays an important role in protecting the vines through the coldest part of winter.

Soga’s wines are not built around concentration for its own sake.

His approach places greater emphasis on delicacy, depth, breadth and length, allowing the character of the fruit and vineyard to remain visible in the finished wine.

That same idea can be found in Rosé Comme Rouge.

The question is not how dark the wine can become, but how much character can remain within its lightness.

Rosé, or Red?

Wine is usually divided into simple categories: red, white and rosé.

This bottle makes those boundaries a little less certain.

There is the transparency and ease associated with rosé.

At the same time, Zweigelt gives the wine red-fruited character and a sense of structure.

Perhaps there is no need to decide exactly which side it belongs to.

It can be approached with the freshness of a rosé, while offering some of the depth and presence of a red.

That freedom is captured neatly in the name Rosé Comme Rouge.