It’s not really a secret: Japan loves vending machines. So it’s not really surprising this newest (and quite unique) model is made in Nippon, too: A vending machine that lets you buy luxury wines through a pre-paid card. The machine is supposed to soften the negative effects the current recession has for wine lovers.

The vending machine is operated by the Goss Wine Bar in Ginza, Tokyo’s poshest neighborhood. All customers need to do is to insert said pre-paid card, select a bottle of wine among 24 different kinds and watch how the wine flows into their glasses. Reportedly, customers enjoy the fact that they can actually see the bottle before they drink the wine and that they can now taste expensive wines in smaller quantities.

The Goss Wine Bar claims the number of customers has risen by 20% in September (when compared to September 2008).

Via Nikkei [registration required, paid subscription]