Kinryo ─ The Offering Sake of Konpira-san

Audio Guide

Kinryo — One Minute of Stillness

230 years beside the great pilgrim shrine of Shikoku

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Climb the 1,368 steps first. The sake earns its place after.

Soul of the Kura

For two centuries, pilgrims have climbed
1,368 stone steps up Mount Zōzu
to pray at Kotohira-gū — Konpira-san —
the great shrine of sailors and merchants.

At the foot of those stairs,
since 1789, Kinryo has brewed sake.
Each year, a bottle is presented to the shrine
as the official offering — a duty older than steam ships.

Characteristics

Founded 1789 in Kotohira, Kagawa, by the Nishino family.
The brewery sits at the foot of the great pilgrim staircase to Kotohira-gū
(known nationally as Konpira-san).
For over 230 years, Kinryo has produced the official offering sake.
Soft, balanced, faintly mineral — built to follow a Sanuki udon meal,
and the long climb to the shrine.

Reasons to Visit

壱
Climb 1,368 steps to Konpira-san
Shikoku's most famous pilgrimage. The brewery sits at the bottom of the stairs.
弐
Drink the official shrine offering sake
A 230-year unbroken offering relationship — a sake delivered to the kami every year.
参
Visit the Kinryo Sake Museum
A reconstructed Edo brewery, traditional brewing tools, and a free tasting at the end.
四
Pair with Tamura Jinja
Sanuki's first-rank shrine in northern Takamatsu — older than Kotohira-gū by centuries.
五
Eat Sanuki udon for breakfast
Kagawa's national obsession — and the post-pilgrimage meal Kinryo was built for.

Tasting Etiquette

Visit Konpira-san first.
Pilgrimage before tasting. The kami come first.
Try one cup cool, one warm.
Kinryo handles temperature beautifully.
Pair with Sanuki udon or grilled fish.
Soft sake answers the soft local cuisine.
Take home a small omiki bottle.
Sake offered to the kami first, then enjoyed at home — the original tradition.
Visit the museum tasting room as a rest stop.
Halfway up the climb? No. After the climb, definitely.

Visit & Tasting

📍

Address

623 Kotohira-cho, Nakatado-gun, Kagawa 766-0001

🚄

Access

JR Dosan Line → Kotohira Station → 10 min walk

🕐

Hours

9:00–16:00

📅

Closed

Year-end / New Year

🥢

Tasting

Free tasting · museum ¥310

📞

Reservation

Walk-in OK

🇬🇧

English

Limited

— Facilities —

🅿️ParkingLimited

🚻RestroomYes

🏛️Museum¥310

🏷️ShopYes

🗺 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.

Complete the Sake Journey

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

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

Kinryo Daiginjo Konpira 大吟醸こんぴら

Daiginjo · the offering line

The flagship. Soft, balanced, faintly mineral. The recipe presented annually to Kotohira-gū.

Kinryo Junmai Sanuki 純米讃岐

Junmai · everyday Kagawa

A friendly local bottle. The post-udon afternoon sake of Kotohira town.

Kinryo Reijin 麗人

Junmai Daiginjo · long-aged

A reserve bottle aged in temperature-controlled cellar. Honeyed, refined — for celebration meals.

Recommended Pairings

◆Sanuki udon (cold, with bonito broth)
◆Olive-oil-fed Setouchi yellowtail
◆Honetsuki-dori (bone-in chicken, Kagawa speciality)
◆Wasanbon — Sanuki's ultra-fine sugar

Pair With Pilgrimage

⛩

Ichinomiya of Sanuki Province · adjacent to Konpira-san

Tamura Jinja & Kotohira-gū

田村神社 · 金刀比羅宮

Sanuki's first-rank Ichinomiya is Tamura Jinja, in Takamatsu —
but the brewery's adjacent shrine is Kotohira-gū (Konpira-san),
the great mountain shrine of sailors and merchants atop 1,368 steps.
Climb Konpira; bottle the brewery's offering at the bottom.

Visit the Shrine →

Kinryo

🏨Stay Near the Kura

🚄Getting There

🍶Sake Tours & Tastings

🍵Sake Vessels & Bottles

Tamura Jinja & Kotohira-gū