Hiraizumi ─ Japan's Third-Oldest Sake Brewery

Audio Guide

Hiraizumi — One Minute of Stillness

A kura that has fermented sake for over 500 years

0:00−:−−

Drink at room temperature first. Yamahai's depth needs warmth.

Soul of the Kura

Five hundred and forty years ago,
during the Sengoku wars,
the Saitō family began brewing sake
in a fishing village on the Sea of Japan.

They have not stopped since.
The same method — yamahai —
that the rest of Japan abandoned for speed,
this brewery has kept alive without break.

Characteristics

Founded 1487 in Nikaho, Akita —
only Sudō Honke (1141) and Kenbishi (1505 contested) precede it.
The third-oldest continuously operating sake brewery in Japan.
Ferments exclusively by yamahai, the wild-yeast method,
using snowmelt from sacred Mt. Chōkai.
Bold, savoury, lactic, layered — sake that tastes of its 500-year cellar.

Reasons to Visit

壱
Drink one of Japan's three oldest sakes
A bottle older than the Tokugawa shogunate, still poured by the same family.
弐
See pure-yamahai brewing in action
Wild lactic bacteria coaxed by hand for weeks — almost extinct elsewhere.
参
Walk to the Sea of Japan
The brewery is five minutes from the western coastline — Akita's wild fishing villages.
四
Pair with Chōkai-san Ōmonoimi Jinja
The first-rank shrine of Dewa, on holy Mt. Chōkai — same snowmelt as the brewery's water.
五
Eat Akita hatahata in winter
Sailfin sandfish — Akita's salt-cured winter classic, built for yamahai.

Tasting Etiquette

Begin at room temperature.
Yamahai needs warmth to open. Cold mutes everything.
Then warm gently to 40°C.
A 500-year sake reveals new layers as the heat rises.
Pair with grilled, salted, or aged food.
Yamahai's umami pushes back against bold flavours.
Avoid raw fish first.
Save sashimi for cleaner sakes; Hiraizumi wants miso.
Take notes by candlelight.
A 540-year-old brewery deserves no electric urgency.

Visit & Tasting

📍

Address

22 Oji Hama, Hirasawa, Nikaho-shi, Akita 018-0402

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Access

JR Uetsu Line → Konoura Station → 10 min taxi

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Hours

9:00–16:30

📅

Closed

Sundays · year-end

🥢

Tasting

Paid tasting

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Reservation

By reservation only

🇬🇧

English

Limited

— Facilities —

🅿️ParkingYes

🚻RestroomYes

🏷️ShopYes

📅TourReserve

🗺 Directions 🌐 Official Site 📍 Open in Maps 📜 All Breweries

※ Hours, fees and contact details may change seasonally — please confirm on the brewery's official site before your visit.

Signature Labels Complete the Sake Journey

Arrange your visit to Hiraizumi — stay nearby, get there, taste with a guide, or take a bottle home.

* Some links contain affiliate advertising. Commissions support this site's operation.

Hiraizumi Yamahai Junmai 山廃純米

Yamahai Junmai · the brewery's signature method

The flagship. Bold, lactic, layered. Pure expression of 500 years of unchanged technique.

Hiraizumi Mahoroba まほろば

Junmai Daiginjo · Yamahai · long-aged

A reserve bottle aged in temperature-controlled cellar. Honeyed, structural, almost wine-like.

Hiraizumi FOUR SEASONS 四季

Yamahai Junmai · seasonal release

A four-part annual release showing how yamahai changes through the year. Cult collector item.

Recommended Pairings

◆Hatahata-zushi — Akita salt-cured sailfin sandfish
◆Iburi-gakko — smoked daikon pickle
◆Aged Tohoku miso ramen
◆Roast Hinai-jidori chicken

Pair With Pilgrimage

⛩

Ichinomiya of Dewa Province

Chōkai-san Ōmonoimi Jinja

鳥海山大物忌神社

The first-rank shrine of ancient Dewa,
enshrined on the slopes of holy Mt. Chōkai.
The mountain's snowmelt feeds both the shrine spring
and the brewery's wells — the same source for centuries.
Visit shrine first; then drive thirty minutes to Hiraizumi.

Visit the Shrine →

Hiraizumi

🏨Stay Near the Kura

🚄Getting There

🍶Sake Tours & Tastings

🍵Sake Vessels & Bottles

Chōkai-san Ōmonoimi Jinja