Now that the first volume of wine manga The Drops of God has hit the stores, it seems only fitting to celebrate the occasion with a wine tasting! Vertical and Bottlerocket Wine and Spirit will be hosting a very special soiree in New York City on Wednesday, November 9 featuring six wines featured in this acclaimed wine manga. This event starts at 6:00 pm, and is free and open to the public. You can RSVP here at the Very Vintage Vertical Vednesday Facebook event page.
The Drops of God is the kind of manga that transcends the usual boundaries of what most people think manga is, or even what comics can be, because it's has done more than just entertain comics readers -- it has directly influenced how wine is bought, sold and enjoyed throughout Asia. The Drops of God is the creation of Tadashi Agi (a.k.a. sister/brother team Yuko and Shin Kibayashi) and artist Shu Okimoto. Since 2004, The Drops of God has been featured in Weekly Morning, a seinen manga magazine that also features Chi's Sweet Home and St. Young Men.
The story focuses on Shizuku Kanzaki, the twenty-something year-old son of a world-renown wine critic. While he grew up in the world of wine, Shizuku has turned his back on his father's passion and works at a beer company. But when his father dies, Shizuku gets thrust into the world of wine when he finds that he must compete against a rising star critic to find the wines described in his father's will as the '12 Apostles and the Drops of God." The stakes are nothing less than his father's multi-million dollar wine collection. Trouble is, compared to his rival, Issei Tomine, Shizuku knows very little about wine. With the help of a sommelier-in-training and a few other unexpected allies, Shizuku embarks on a journey that will take him around the world to find these legendary wines.
What makes The Drops of God special is that it features real wines from real vineyards, and describes them in such a way that makes even the most casual wine drinker crave a taste of these amazing vintages. As a result, many of the wines featured in The Drops of God have gone on to be bestsellers throughout Asia. This kind of clout has earned this manga accolades from numerous wine and food publications, including Decanter Magazine, which named it one of the top 50 most influential wine publications in the world.
Even if you can't make it for this Wednesday's wine tasting event in New York City, you can get a taste of The Drops of God -- Vertical has posted a few preview pages to whet your taste for this incredibly entertaining manga.
Image credits: © Tadashi Agi and Shu Okimoto / KODANSHA, © Vertical Inc.
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