September 2026 Wine Club
Return to Routine with Unexpected Wines
There can be comfort in a rhythmic routine, and September feels like a return. Kids go back to school and everyone's suddenly acting like a 6pm dinner is a normal and achievable goal again. Remember when the sun set at almost 10pm? This time of year in New England is something special, and it can take the sting out of watching summer fade in your rearview mirror, but for those that aren't ready to give up on the unexpected and wild pace of the warmer months, we have some extra special wines for you.
This month our bottles made the long journey from Coco Farm & Winery, a hillside estate in Ashikaga, Japan, wild-fermented and hand-farmed on a genuinely absurd 38-degree slope. Japan isn't a place most people think "wine country," and that's exactly what makes it worth a detour. These bottles will keep things interesting at a time of year marked by predictable change.
1) NOUMIN DRY 2024, ASHIKAGA, JAPAN
WINE: WHITE // GRAPES: BLEND (MÜLLER-THURGAU, KERNER & OTHERS) // CLUB: VIN DE SOIF & CORK DORK
About the Producer: Coco Farm & Winery started in 1958, when teacher Noboru Kawada and his students carved vineyards into a steep hillside in Ashikaga, Tochigi. It's still a social enterprise today, residents of the on-site welfare facility work the vines alongside staff, farming without herbicides or chemical fertilizers on slopes so steep everything's done by hand.
About the Wine: "Noumin" means farmer, and this is Coco Farm's ode to the people who make it all happen. It’s an easygoing, wild-fermented white blend led by Müller-Thurgau and Kerner. Grapefruit and kabosu citrus keep it lively, basil and mint sneak in on the finish, and there's just enough weight to make it feel like more than a "regular" wine. Pour it with whatever's actually in your fridge on a Tuesday.
2) NOUMIN ROSSO 2024, ASHIKAGA, JAPAN
WINE: RED // GRAPES: BLEND (MUSCAT BAILEY A, MERLOT & CABERNET SAUVIGNON) // CLUB: VIN DE SOIF & CORK DORK
About the Wine: This is Noumin's red half, and it's a little more mischievous. It’s a wild-fermented blend with a touch of carbonic maceration that keeps it bright, even as the fruit turns toward raspberry, strawberry, and dark cherry. Cumin and black pepper show up with a whisper of leather underneath (in the best way). Soft tannins, real acidity, zero nonsense, this is a week night staple.
3) COCO ROSE NV, ASHIKAGA, JAPAN
WINE: ROSÉ // GRAPES: MERLOT, KERNER, CHARDONNAY, CABERNET SAUVIGNON, MUSCAT BAILEY A, PETIT MANSENG & SHOKOSHI // CLUB: CORK DORK ONLY
About the Wine: How many different grapes have you tasted in a single wine? Well this one might take the cake. One wine, seven grapes, pulled from every corner of the estate and blended into a rosé that refuses to be pigeonholed into an easy “summer sipper”. It's pale in color but savory in flavor, with quiet acidity and a touch of grip that puts it closer to a southern French rosé than anything blush and poolside. This bottle is something special.
Not a Cork Dork yet? Upgrade your membership for ~$20/month and this bottle is yours going forward.
