Sake is one of the most popular drinks in Japan. Different rice and water are used in different regions, resulting in sake with different flavors depending on regions.
The relationship with the snow country culture can also be seen in the background of sake.
For example, some sake breweries make good use of the heavy snowfall in their brewing process, such as using melt water and Yukimuro (a insulted room that store massive amount of snow to mature and chill sake).
Rice, an important ingredient in sake brewing, also grows well thanks to the melt water from the snow that accumulates in the winter and melts in the spring. Therefore, some sake breweries benefit indirectly from the snow.
Even if snow is not directly involved in sake brewing, some breweries name their sake after snow-related words. Whether directly or indirectly, snow has an impact on sake culture.
Let's take a look at some of the breweries in Takaoka and Tonami area, Toyama prefecture, Japan.
Takaoka and Tonami Area
Takaoka City, Himi City, and Oyabe City, located in the western part of Toyama Prefecture, are known as the Takaoka District. The Tateyama Mountain Range is reflected through the coast, offering a spectacular view. The Tonami area is located to the south of the Takaoka area. This area is home to Gokayama, a World Heritage Site along with Shirakawa-go in Gifu Prefecture, and retains the same old village scenery.
How much snow does it get in the Takaoka and Tonami areas?
Basically, all areas are heavy snowfall areas, but some areas in the Tonami area have been designated as special heavy snowfall areas. In the Tonami area, there is an area designated as a special heavy snowfall zone.
Himi City (Takaoka area)
Himi City has a part of Toyama Bay, which is a perfect fishing ground environment. In winter, the view of the Tateyama Mountain Range over Toyama Bay is a symbol of Himi City. There are also many festivals held in the city, such as the Marumage Festival and the Gongon Festival, which is celebrated to pray for rain.
Takazawa Shuzozyo (高澤酒造場)
Established in 1872. When the founder came to Himi City, he was struck by the beauty of the sun rising behind the brewery and the Tateyama mountain range, and decided to brew sake in Himi City.
URL : https://ariiso-akebono.jp/english/
TEL : 0766-72-0006
Takaoka City (Takaoka area)
Like Himi City, Takaoka City is located in the northwestern part of Toyama Prefecture, where the Tateyama Mountain Range can be seen through the Amaharashi Coast. The west side of the city is a mountainous area with the Nishiyama Hills and Mount Futagami, the northeast side is Toyama Bay, and the east side is the Sho river and Oyabe Rivers, making it a place rich in nature.
Also remaining are Yamacho-suji, where private houses built in the Meiji period stand side by side, and Kanaya-machi, the birthplace of Takaoka casting and where townhouses with Senbon-goshi(Samanoko = lattice of evenly spaced vertical timber bars) still remain.
Seito Shuzozyo (清都酒造場)
Established in 1906. In 2000, the brewery building was registered as a national tangible cultural property, and the atmosphere of a good old sake brewery still remains.
TEL : 0766-22-0557
URL (Toyama Prefecture Sake Brewery Association) : https://www.toyama-sake.or.jp/en/pages/38/
Oyabe City (Tonami area)
Located in the western part of Toyama Prefecture. It is close to present-day Toyama City and Takaoka City, which were castle towns of the Kaga Clan and its branch clans, and Kanazawa City in Ishikawa Prefecture, and prospered as a post town on the Hokuriku Highway. A characteristic of Oyabe City is that the public buildings in the city are built in a European Western architectural style, and the city is well known as a "fairy tale town" in Japan.
Kuroda Shuzo (黒田酒造)
Established in 1887. Uses the Shogawa River system for brewing water.
TEL : 0766-67-1803
URL : http://www.hokuichi.com/
Tonami City (Tonami area)
One of the greatest features of Tonami City is its scattered villages, which are called "the original landscape of Japan". A scattered village refers to a form of village in which private houses are scattered in a vast arable land. Tulips are the specialty of Tonami City, and there is a tulip-themed urban park called Tonami Tulip Park. It is also famous for its hot springs, and Shokawa Hot Spring Resort is well known.
Wakatsuru Shuzo (若鶴酒造)
Established in 1862. The Shogawa River system is used for brewing water. In 1952, the company began making whiskey. There are two breweries and a distillery: Reiwa, Taisho, and Saburomaru, each of which offers tours.
TEL : 0763-32-3032 website : https://www.wakatsuru.co.jp/en/index.html Reiwa brewery : https://www.wakatsuru.co.jp/en/reiwa/index.html Taisho Brewery : https://www.wakatsuru.co.jp/en/reiwa/index.html Saburomaru Ddistillery : https://www.wakatsuru.co.jp/saburomaru/en/
Nanto City (Tonami area)
Nanto City is a place where the original landscape of Japan and the good old traditional culture of Japan still remain strong.
In the Gokayama area, where the Gassho-zukuri villages still remain, people live with their own unique culture, including the inheritance of Gokayama Washi, a traditional craft.
The area has prospered as a silk weaving center since the Edo period, and there are many traditional festivals such as the Johana Hikiyama Festival, a spring festival registered as an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO, and the Fukuno Yotaka Festival, in which large andon lamps are paraded around the town.
In the Inami area, where numerous carving studios line the streets, wood carvings are everywhere, and the whole town is filled with an artistic atmosphere.
Wakakoma Shuzozyo (若駒酒造場)
Established in 1889. The brewery uses subterranean water from the Shogawa River for its brewing water.
URL : https://wakakoma.bsj.jp/#company-info TEL : 0763-82-7373
Narimasa Shuzo (成政酒造)
Established in 1894. The company uses water from "Iouzen", a mountain that forms the border with Ishikawa Prefecture, as its brewing water. The name of the brewery's representative sake, "Narimasa(成政)" is named after the warlord Sasa Narimasa, who was the lord of Etchu during the Warring States Period.
TEL : 0763-52-0204
URL : https://www.narimasa.co.jp/
Sanshoraku Shuzo (三笑楽酒造)
Established in 1880. Surrounded by steep mountains with virgin beech forests, Gokayama is one of the heaviest snowfall areas in Japan, and water from Gokayama is used as brewing water.
TEL : 0763-66-2010
URL : https://www.sansyouraku.jp/index.html
