FUKUOKA -- Think about how you enjoy red wine. With a tasty pasta dish or rich gamey stew, perhaps? Well, how about sushi? Few would answer yes to this one -- unless they were culinary ninja, as creative director Daisuke Utagawa of Washington, D.C.'s first sushi restaurant Sushi-Ko, describes himself. And he's bursting with enthusiasm to let the world know how well the two match.

Japanese-born Utagawa oversaw his second international event in which exclusive pinot noir wines from Burgundy were teamed with his inspired Japanese cuisine. The gala dinner was held March 23 at the five-star Grand Hyatt Fukuoka hotel, one of only seven of its kind in the world and the only one in Japan, as part of a series introducing the wines of Britain's oldest wine merchant, the 300-year-old Berry Bros. & Rudd.

Utagawa holds that, contrary to popular belief, many red wines suit Japanese food beautifully. Although dishes such as sushi are delicate, they are rich in umami, which emphasizes red wine's fruitiness while canceling its tannin qualities. Umami is the sixth flavor of food, and while the term isn't used in Western cooking, it technically refers to the taste protein has on the tongue. In contrast, white wine has a fruity acidity that can literally cook fragrant fish dishes in the mouth, killing their umami.