A research group led by Professor Emeritus Takuji Hoshino of Okayama University of Science (OUS) has successfully developed a new wine grape variety named "Muscat Shiragai," created by crossing the wild species Shiraga grape—native only to the Takahashi River basin in Okayama Prefecture—with Muscat of Alexandria. The group has filed for new variety registration with Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), and the application was formally accepted.