Lunch and dinner sessions that will turn you
into a true connoisseur of Japanese wines

What wines do you normally drink? How do you select and savor them? A fine wine offers myriad pleasures: the depth of its color, its bouquet and flavor, the richness of the region that produced it—all of which are further enhanced when paired with fine cuisine. Wine is produced around the world, from France to Italy, Spain, California, and Chile, with winemaking cultures existing in over 60 countries. Every wine has a story to tell, and we hope to be able to share some of these stories with you through our wine tastings and lessons. Each seminar will present tips on the art of wine savoring, while offering a focus on Japanese wine culture, which has undergone dramatic growth in the past 30 years.

Our lecturers will guide you through the differences between French and Italian wines among other topics as we answer those little questions you’ve always had about wine. Food prepared by our very own chefs will also be offered to enhance your wine tasting experience.

Wine tasting (with light meal)

Date: November 6
Time: 12:00 – 14:30
Location: Garden Restaurant, Niki Club & Spa
Cost: ¥8,085 (incl. tax) per person

Wine Lesson & Dinner
Date: November 6
Time: 18:30 – 21:00
Location: La Brise Restaurant, Niki Club 1986
Cost: ¥18,480 (incl. tax) per person
Maximum 15 participants

We also offer special deals that combine stays at Niki Club with one or both of the above seminars. Please contact us for more details.

*Cancellations must be made no later than three days in advance due to the amount of preparation required for these seminars.
*Wine novices are welcome to participate.
*All food is specially prepared for these seminars by our chefs.
*Please inform us in advance of any foods that you cannot eat.
*Please note that all seminars are conducted in Japanese only.

Seminar programs

Wine Tasting

Part 1 The basics: What to remember before sampling your wine
- How to select and hold wine glasses
- How to pour wine for others and receive pourings
- Proper wine temperature
- Vintages
Part 2 Winemaking: From the vineyards of Japan to the bottle
Part 3 Exploring the wine country: Grape-growing regions and wines of Japan
Part 4 Wine tasting: How to drink and savor wine (accompanied by food)

Wine Lesson & Dinner

Part 1 History / Market: Japanese wines in the world
Part 2 Wineries of note
Part 3 Wine tasting: Savoring Japanese wine (accompanied by food)
Part 4 Enjoying Japanese wines (e.g. at events, tastings, restaurants)

A product of French and Polish cultures, Federic Chopin went to Paris in 1831, where he quickly became the darling of Parisian high society both for his aristocratic features and his natural virtuosity on the piano. This year’s Christmas Concert at Niki Club tells the story of Chopin and his love affair with French novelist George Sand, using the composer’s distinctive melodies as well as Sand’s own words to evoke Chopin’s delicate humanity and wrenching sadness in a luminous, poignant performance by Duo YKEDA (pianists Patrick Zygmanowski and Tamayo Ikeda).

Concept and text: Tamayo Ikeda, Fumiko Kaneko, Patrick Zygmanowski

Date: December 11, 2011
Location: Kankikan
Price: ¥28,000 (incl. taxes and service charges)

*Price includes concert, dinner, and drinks.

Schedule
2.30 pm: Registration
3 – 4.30 pm: Concert
6 – 8 pm: Dinner

Guests are welcome to use our shuttle bus service to and from Niki Club. A shuttle bus will depart JR Nasu Shiobara Station at 1.45 pm, and leave Kankikan at 8.20 pm.

*Reservations are required. Please contact us by phone at +81-287-78-2215 or email at niki-club@nikiclub.jp by December 8.
*Guests wishing to stay the night at Niki Club enjoy a 30% discount on rooms.
*No children under 6 years of age are allowed.
*Dress code is smart casual.

The inaugural annual Niki Club Garden Project has come to an end, with the completion of a rather unusual garden, courtesy of treehouse creator Takashi Kobayashi: a tiny tearoom built into a walnut tree on the bank of a river that runs through the resort grounds.

The Garden Project was devised as a way for artists, architects, designers, biologists, ecologists, garden designers, anthropologists, and philosophers to discuss and share ideas on creating an entirely new kind of garden.　Every year for the next ten years, a miniature world will be created here in Yokozawa.

In his essay, “L’Assemblage: How a single garden became the world’s garden,” Tokyo University of the Arts Fine Arts Professor Toshiharu Ito writes:

”French garden designer Gilles Clément, famous the Parc André-Citroën, Quai Branly Museum gardens in Paris and other innovative designs, believes the 21st century will be the century of gardens. He advocates a radical shift from the old paradigm of gardening, which reshapes nature to fit a predetermined, static order, to a new type of garden shaped according to a more dynamic order. Clément’s approach demonstrates that the true heart of a garden is its ever-transforming life force.

“This project seeks to lay down the path for a new tradition of human art that emphasizes harmony and coexistence with nature. Clement once described the Earth itself as a single, tiny garden. He has gathered plant life from around the world and allowed them to take root within his unique garden, where they have undergone surprising transformations, together forming a work of art akin to an assemblage. The wit, beauty, and poetry of this single garden will echo in gardens around the world. Our tiny attempts to connect humankind and nature anew will all start from this single garden.”

Full text here (Japanese only).

The trail leading to the walnut tree is a pleasant walk along the river. The garden is to be officially named by poet Mutsuo Takahashi.

Click here for a profile of Takashi Kobayashi (Japanese only).

Uniting Body, Heart, and Life
Modern Wellbeing Series (1)

At Niki Club & Spa, we have long offered our guests the chance to reunite body, mind, and spirit through meticulously prepared food, therapeutic hot springs, spa treatments, and dips in our woodland baths. We are now delighted to present “Uniting Body, Heart, and Life: Modern Wellbeing.”

This seminar will combine lectures on the topic of wellbeing in the modern world by Dr. Ryoichi Obitsu—Director Emeritus of Obitsu Sankei Hospital and one of the foremost practitioners of holistic medicine—with a program designed to enhance your overall wellbeing, such as nature walks guided by our Forest Concierge, qigong exercises, and a specially designed regimen of holistic cuisine.

Our holistic cuisine menu will consist of a unique selection of special teas and dishes designed to revitalize the body’s self-regulation mechanisms. The tea leaves and their aroma, the sound of the hot water being poured, your body’s own qi energy, and the magic of the spoken word will come together to stimulate all the senses. Lunch will consist of light buffet-style fare, while Japanese-style tea cuisine will be offered for dinner.

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Ryoichi Obitsu

Obitsu was born in Saitama Prefecture in 1936. He graduated with a degree in medicine from the University of Tokyo, after which he served in positions at University of Tokyo Hospital and Tokyo Metropolitan Komagome Hospital. He opened Obitsu Sankei Hospital in 1982, where he has been Director Emeritus since 2011. Obitsu is renowned for his holistic medical practice combining Western medicine with traditional Chinese medicine, qigong, and psychotherapy, and serves as Chairman of the Japan Holistic Medical Society. He has hosted numerous wellbeing seminars around Japan since 2000. Publications include Kenko Mondo (Health questions and answers), co-authored with Hiroshi Itsuki; “Inochi” to Ba no Iryo (“Life” and medicine in the field); and Dokuta Obitsu Ryoichi no Tokimeki Yojoshoku (Dr. Ryoichi Obitsu’s amazing diet for wellbeing).

——————————

Date: December 18, 2011
Time: 11 am
Location: Niki Club

Schedule
Part 1: Nature walk, qigong workshop, tea / lunch buffet, lecture by Ryoichi Obitsu
Part 2: Wellbeing training talk, tea / tea cuisine dinner
Price: \12,000 (tax incl.) for Part 1 only; \25,000 (tax incl.) for Parts 1 & 2

Maximum 70 participants.

Please book by phone at +81-287-78-2215 or email at niki-club@nikiclub.jp

For those wishing to stay at Niki Club

Niki Club is offering special deals for guests wishing to spend one or more nights at Niki Club after participating in the seminar.

1 night: ¥57,000
2 nights: ¥98,000 (includes aromatherapy treatment session)

*Rater are per person when 2 people are staying and are inclusive of all taxes and service charges, as well as the seminar fee for Parts 1 and 2, bath charges, breakfast, and an aromatherapy seminar fee. To inquire about rates when more than 2 people are staying or for stays longer than 2 nights, please contact us by phone at +81-287-78-2215 or email at niki-club@nikiclub.jp

La Brise in Niki Club 1986 (Main Wing) and Garden Restaurant in Niki Club & Spa (East Wing) have begun offering their fall menus. Guests will get to enjoy seasonal vegetables, acorns, mushrooms, and other fall flavors. For menu details, visit the Restaurants & Bars page.

Niki Club is planning a number of events in honor of the 150th anniversary of the founding of Morris & Co. Celebrated as the founder of modern design, English artist William Morris stressed the importance of crafting by hand. In addition to organizing a special exhibit on Morris’ life in Niki Hall, located in Niki Club 1986 (Main Wing), one room facing the wing’s pebble pond will be specially designated as the Morris Room. Also planned are salon discussions on Morris’ design philosophy and the age in which he lived, as well as on British tea culture.

Throughout the duration of the exhibit, La Brise restaurant in Niki Club 1986 will be offering a special dinner course commemorating Morris.

Dates: Oct. 28 – Nov. 1, 2011

Sponsor: Manas Trading Inc.
Accommodation inquiries: Niki Club (Tel: +81-287-78-2215)
Salon discussion inquiries: Manas Trading (Tel: +81-3-5721-2831)
Click here to visit the event website (Japanese only).

The five peaks of Cha-usu-dake, Asahi-dake, Minami-gassan, Sanbonyari-dake, and Kuro-oya-dake are collectively known by the locals as “Nasu Goho”—the Five Peaks of Nasu. The Nasu Kogen highlands that extends from their feet offers breathtaking scenes in the autumn, thanks to the combination of lush, colorful foliage and majestic mountain vistas. The best way to experience these autumnal changes is to hike up the mountains or take a drive along their feet, while the Nasu Ropeway also offers some spectacular views of the foliage from above.

Meanwhile, in Niki Club, the foliage around the resort’s Main and East Wings starts to change in late October thanks to the generous amounts of sunlight that pour in, before spreading to the surrounding forests. During this period, the yellow leaves of konara oaks and pale red burning bushes add a different sense of luxury to the resort grounds.

Locations where autumnal foliage can be enjoyed
(Driving times are when traveling from Niki Club)

Niki Club grounds: Late October through early November

Nasu Mountains: Early to mid-October
Nasu Ropeway (30 min. by car)
Azalea Rope Bridge (25 min. by car)
Mt. Jeans Ropeway (40 min. by car)

Nasu Heisei-no-mori National Park: Early to mid-October (35 min. by car)
Opened in May, this beautiful National Park is on the former grounds of an Imperial villa.

Sessho-seki volcanic site: Mid- to late October (20 min. by car)
Although few in numbers, the trees in this area offer some magnificent foliage. There is also a hot spring nearby commemorated by a shrine.

Skyline Road: Mid- to late October (15 min. by car to Ikkenjaya resort)
Town Route 266, also known as Skyline Road, extends from Ikkenjaya resort to Itamuro hot spring and snakes along the southwestern contours of the Nasu Mountains. A truly memorable driving experience through a tunnel of autumnal leaves.

Four months have passed since the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, but the colossal toll left in its wake lingers on.

On March 12, the day following the earthquake, Niki Club decided to temporarily close its doors to allow for a thorough inspection of its facilities, equipment, and water quality, and to confirm food distribution channels. On March 24, Niki Club resumed operations at Niki Club & Spa (East Wing), leaving the damaged Niki Club 1986 (Main Wing) closed for repairs. Business was initially slow, but repeat guests generously took the time to visit and fill our rooms and suites, and today inquiries and stays are finally beginning to return to pre-quake levels.

However, located as it is about 100 km (70 mi) from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, the Nasu region continues to find traces of radiation in the soil and some agricultural products, and media scares have cut into business. In April, the governments of Tochigi Prefecture and the town of Nasu issued “Tochigi is Safe for Tourism” and “Nasu is Healthy!” declarations, respectively, in an effort to persuade potential visitors of the safety of travelling within the area. While the amounts of radiation detected in the area have remained at minute levels incapable of affecting human health, some guests remain concerned about the presence of radiation. To further assure guests of their safety, Niki Club has commissioned a new round of inspections of the water and soil in the area.

The latest inspections involved 10- and 26-point water quality analyses and measuring the amounts of radioactive elements. No radiation or harmful bacteria were detected, and heavy metal levels were well within safety thresholds, proving that the water and soil of Niki Club are safe.

We encourage all our guests to relax and enjoy the natural environment of Niki Club, without needing to worry about their health and safety.

■Soil quality
Niki Club uses organic fertilizers and fallen leaves from the hotel grounds, as well as natural marine fossils (soft, porous fossilized marine plant matter) to maintain soil activity, regulate soil nutrient levels, and replenish essential minerals. This allows us to cultivate our fruits, vegetables, and herbs without placing stress upon the soil. Our Kitchen Garden now includes four greenhouses, where our entire staff is taking extra pains to ensure the safety of our produce.

●Results of soil component analysis
Inspectors: Hitachi Kyowa Engineering Co., Ltd.
Targets: Soil within Kitchen Garden greenhouses, fruit orchards, outdoor plots
Sampling date: June 16
Analysis dates: June 16 – 28

Click here to read the report (Japanese only).

■Water quality
Ten- and 26-point analyses were conducted for the Main Wing drinking water, East Wing drinking water, Kankikan drinking water, garden drinking water, spring water fountain, the Kitchen Garden pond where our wasabi is grown, as well as the rivers running through the Niki Club grounds. No radiation was found in any of the locations, while levels of harmful bacteria and toxic heavy metals, including the soil’s natural levels, were well within safety thresholds.

●Results of nuclear radioactive element measurements
Inspectors: Hitachi Kyowa Engineering Co., Ltd.
Targets: Main Wing drinking water, East Wing drinking water, Kankikan drinking water, garden drinking water, spring water fountain, Kitchen Garden pond where wasabi is grown, rivers running through Niki Club grounds
Sampling / Analysis date: June 18

Click here to read the report (Japanese only).

●Results of water quality analysis
Inspectors: Hitachi Kyowa Engineering Co., Ltd.
Targets: Main Wing drinking water, East Wing drinking water, Kankikan drinking water, garden drinking water, spring water fountain, Kitchen Garden pond where wasabi is grown, rivers running through Niki Club grounds
Sampling date: June 9
Analysis dates: June 9 – 23

Click here to read the report (Japanese only).

The Okinawans have a saying: “When the mountains are stripped, the sea becomes bare as well.” It illustrates the importance of protecting our mountains in order to protect our seas, of maintaining the natural cycle of water that allows all creatures to live together in harmony. This latest round of water quality inspections have indicated that all drinking water at Niki Club is extremely soft, containing very low quantities of magnesium and calcium ions. This means that not only is the water extremely safe for human consumption, it is also indispensable in cultivating our vegetables and drawing out the best of their flavors in our cuisine. The inspections have served as reminders to all of us here at Niki Club of the natural richness that exists in Yokozawa and Nasu.

We will work to take even greater care in maintaining the health of the soil here, even as we avoid overloading it with fertilization.

July marks the beginning of firefly season around Niki Club, when the alluring lights of these insects can be seen dancing in the dark after 7 p.m.

Almost all of these fireflies have been raised here at Niki Club.

About six years ago, a beloved Niki Club staff member and nature expert who goes by the moniker “Old Man Beardy” diverted spring water flowing beneath our grounds to create a brook in one corner of our Kitchen Garden.

Fireflies typically live near clean water, but the spring water was so clean that it was impeding the growth of a certain type of snail, Semisulcospira libertina, upon which fireflies feed.

So Old Man Beardy performed certain adjustments that made the environment more hospitable to these snails, in the process creating an ecosystem that was closer to nature.

“In summer, it is the night,” goes one passage in The Pillow Book. “It is of course delightful when the moon is out, but no less so on dark nights when countless fireflies can be seen mingling in flight. One even feels charmed when just one or two pass by, giving off a gentle glow.”

Fireflies play an important role in allowing us to enjoy the blessings of nature. This year, we have been blessed with especially large numbers, which tend to come out after 8 p.m.

The distinctive Japanese heike-botaru firefly has been around for about a week now, and should be appearing in especially large numbers around July 12.

Think of them as a small gift from nature. We hope you’ll enjoy spending a moment of nocturnal reverie among the dancing lights of the fireflies.

Genji-botaru fireflies will be visible until around July 15.
Heike-botaru fireflies will be visible until around July 30.
Please note that naturally occurring changes in the environment may affect the occurrence of fireflies.

The duo fennesz + sakamoto, consisting of Viennese-born progressive symphonic artist Christian Fennesz and musician Ryuichi Sakamoto, will be giving a special performance at Niki Club’s Kankikan prior to the release of Flumina, their first album since 2007’s Cendre.

Through the use of piano and guitar, the duo produce electronic music with a distinctly organic vibe that suits the natural, artistic rhythms of Yokozawa. It is an honor to have them here, and we hope you will experience a musical journey that will take you all the way back to the roots of music—the sounds of nature itself.

Date: August 2, 2011
Time: Doors open at 5.30 pm, followed by dinner from 6 to 8 pm and the concert from 8.30 pm.
Location: Niki Club grounds / Kankikan
Performers: Ryuichi Sakamoto and Christian Fennesz
Price: ¥40,000 (including dinner)

* Each guest will received a complimentary copy of Flumina.

Please book in advance via phone at +81-287-78-2215 or email at niki-club@nikiclub.jp

Ryuichi Sakamoto

Sakamoto was born in Tokyo in 1952. He graduated with a Masters from Tokyo University of the Arts. Sakamoto released his solo debut album Thousand Knives in 1978, and also formed the techno-pop band Yellow Magic Orchestra the same year with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi. After YMO disbanded in 1983, Sakamoto continued his career in a variety of fields including music, film, publishing, and advertising. He won a BAFTA in 1984 for the soundtrack he composed and performed for Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, and a Grammy and Academy Award in 1987 for scoring The Last Emperor. He now works primarily in America and Europe. Sakamoto is the founder of artist collective Artist’s Power, which advocates the use of natural energy sources.

Christian Fennesz

Fennesz is an Austrian guitarist who produces primarily electronic music. Since releasing his groundbreaking Endless Summer album in 2001, Fennesz has continued to push the boundaries of electronic music in collaborations with artists such as David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto. He often guests on works by other artists under the Fennesz moniker, and continues to play a major role in electro-symphonic music.