German Wine Queen Brings Mosel Magic to Tokyo

Outside the German Embassy residence in Minami-Azabu, rain fell steadily across the city on Wednesday evening. Inside, the mood could not have been more different.

The second annual German Wine Reception — Deutsche Weinvielfalt erleben, or “Experiencing the Diversity of German Wine” — drew a full room of guests to the Ambassador’s residence, including Consumer Affairs Agency Commissioner Horii and Senior Vice Minister of Agriculture Yoichi Watanabe, who proposed the evening’s toast. The occasion was made especially memorable by the presence of Anna Zenz, the reigning German Wine Queen, who travelled from the Mosel region for the night.

Chargé d’Affaires Martin Huth opened proceedings with characteristic warmth — admitting, with a smile, that the atmosphere in the room was already so convivial before he began speaking that he almost felt bad interrupting it. He traced German wine’s identity back to its origins: “This diversity traces back to ancient Rome, when the first vines were planted along the Rhine — more than 2,000 years of tradition.” Innovation, he was quick to add, sits alongside that heritage — sustainable viticulture, precision winemaking, and new varieties developed to meet international quality standards, without losing what makes German wine distinctly itself.

Zenz spoke with quiet authority about what sustains it all. “Even the steepest slopes are still worked largely by hand,” she said, “and the knowledge passes from generation to generation — that continuity is at the heart of what we do.”

Twenty producers poured 27 wines across themed tasting corners — Riesling, Spätburgunder, Grauburgunder, sparkling — paired with Japanese food that proved, on the night, a natural match. The room stayed lively until the final glass.

As the German Wine Queen herself proclaimed: Prost und zum Wohl.

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