The art of wine - manga style

The art of wine - manga style
By Tom Bailey

Two brothers on an epic comic-book odyssey to find the ultimate classic wine. Only in Japan? No - the Far East's take on wine tasting is coming to Britain

Japanese manga comics are best known for their adult blend of mythical beasts, lonely heroes and violent martial arts. So it might come as a surprise to learn that the hottest manga storyline, currently gripping Korean CEOs and Chinese car plant drones, centres on two polite chaps travelling around the world and tasting wine.

Kami No Shizuku – or The Drops Of God – has been wildly popular with manga fans since its creation in 2004, and is considered a bible for ordinary wine-lovers scared by stuffy wine magazines.

Sales have topped a million copies in South Korea alone, with sales of wine shooting up by 30 per cent in response.

The ten-volume series sees two brothers given the challenge of locating 12 legendary wines when their father, a wine critic, dies suddenly.

Whichever son succeeds in the challenge inherits their father's ?9 million wine cellar. (The exact contents of the cellar are not revealed in the first series, but the chances are that Cliff Richard's Vida Nova missed the cut...)

Printed mostly in black and white and drawn to look like an ancient Japanese woodblock print, the secret of its success lies in the brilliant, sensual – and ever more outrageous – wine descriptions. 'Just like a classic rock concert!' says one brother after taking a sip of a 2001 Mont-P?rat.


'Like walking in a quiet forest being followed by two butterflies,' exclaims the other brother.

It's hardly Decanter magazine, but Shin and Yuko Kibayashi, the wine-loving brother-and-sister team behind the comic who write under pseudonyms, take a perverse interest in dispensing with tedious wine terminology.

'We try to find an unusual phrase that sums up the experience, not using the sort of language a sommelier would use, but using images to make it sound delicious,' says Yuko.

Any individual wine lucky enough to be name-checked can expect to sell an extra 50 cases within 48 hours – the Asian equivalent of the 'Delia Effect'.

Such is the comic's status in South Korea that parents often slip a copy into their children's suitcase before they leave for university, in the hope it will inspire them to develop sophisticated palettes.

Having conquered Asia, The Drops Of God is now teeing up Europe. Issue one has just come out in France.

'It works because a lot of people are scared of fine wine,' says Delphine Katrantzis of French publisher Gl?nat, which took the brave step of publishing it in the home of the wine snob. 'In fact, at the beginning the hero has never even drunk a glass of wine, so it's a learning curve the readers can identify with.' Next stop, Britain.

'It's an exciting prospect for us,' says Emma Hayley of graphic novel publisher Self Made Hero, which last year released a manga version of Shakespeare. 'It demystifies fine wine and puts the fun back into tasting.'

Meanwhile, a spin-off computer game called Sommelier has been launched in Japan, and Hollywood directors are angling for the movie rights. Malcolm Gluck, your days are numbered.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/moslive/article-1024147/The-art-wine--manga-style.html

The Drops of God: Burgundy in a manga
The first album of the Japanese manga entitled Kami no Shizuku (“The drops of God”), which makes several references to the great wines of Burgundy and their qualities is due to be published in French in early April. In Asia, the impact of this cartoon on wine sales has been substantial. This is especially clear in South Korea, where Burgundy used to be little drunk and where sales have now grown by 20%. (Source: Vinexpo)

Alternative title:

Les Gouttes de Dieu (French)
The Drops of God
神の雫 (Japanese)
神之水滴 (Chinese (Hong Kong)
神之雫 (Chinese (Taiwan)

신의 물방울 (Korean)