The only sake brewery in "Shonan" with a restaurant and café with a deep history and full of charm

"Shonan" ( Area around the Shonan coast which is from Kamakura City to Chigasaki City ) is a popular tourist destination blessed with a mild climate and beautiful ocean.

Kagawa, Chigasaki City, located in the area known as the "Shonan" area, is blessed with rich nature and subsoil water from the Tanzawa mountain range.

During the period when "Minamoto no Yoritomo" established the Kamakura Shogunate in Kamakura and the area became a stronghold of the samurai, the "Shonan" area became a major sake production area.

"Kumazawa Shuzou" (Kumazawa Brewery) , established in 1872, is the only remaining historical sake brewery in the Shonan area.

After passing through the mimosa arches, visitors will find a beer brewery, a sake brewery, a restaurant, a café, and a gallery in the spacious grounds of the brewery.

Several shops renovated from sake breweries and old private houses are located on the premises, creating a forest-like space that resembles a town.

The brewery produces not only sake, but also local beer, and has a restaurant and bakery that serves its own delicious sake and bread made with beer instead of water.

It is a very attractive sake brewery.

" Yopparai ( tipsy or drunk people ) makes Japan rich."

This unique company motto was adopted by the current president, Shigeyoshi Kumazawa, the sixth-generation brewer, when he joined the company.

It expresses the company's desire to make local people feel that their community is enriched by the sake brewery's presence.

A tour of the brewery's premises, including a special visit to the brewery's closed-to-the-public area, which is normally inaccessible to the public

This experience offers a special tour of the brewery's premises of the Kumazawa Shuzou ( Kumazawa Brewery), beginning with a guided tour of the brewery's closed-to-the-public area and its many historic buildings, where you can see every corner of the premises.

The guided tour will take you on a journey through the brewery's 150-plus years of history, and the stories behind the brewery's history, culture, sake, food, and more.

This experience includes a special tour of a part of the sake brewery that is normally closed to the public.

Visitors will explore the brewer's passion for sake brewing and the deep charm of sake.

And Kumazawa Shuzou is unique in that many of its buildings were created by reusing old warehouses or relocating old private homes that are several hundred years old.

For example, the building that houses the café and bakery was built using materials from a 250-year-old private house in Aomori Prefecture, extending an earthen warehouse that originally stood on the site.

The exposed beams accentuate the sense of stateliness, and the interior is decorated with old books, antique tools, and vintage furniture, creating an atmospheric space.

The tour is not limited to a visit to the sake brewery, but the best part is that also includes an in-depth look at the building's rich history and the items that have been carefully selected.

"The brewery is not just a place to make delicious sake, but also a place where people gather and a new community is born".

Enjoy the story that the sixth-generation brewer continues to tell with this in mind, as you learn more about his commitment to making sake that is loved by the community.

Sake Tasting (comparative tasting of multiple sakes) Experience to learn more about sake and to love sake more

After the guided tour, you will have the choice of two experiences that will allow you to enjoy the region's beloved sake.

The first is a Sake Tasting (comparative tasting of multiple sakes) Experience at the brewery's direct sales shop called "Chika shitsu" (the basement) , where the entire lineup of Kumazawa Shuzou's sake, including "Tensei" and "Shonan Beer," are available.

First of all , let us explain about the Sake Tasting Experience.

The best time to experience sake tasting is right after the sake brewery tour, so you can enjoy the richness of sake to the fullest.

From a selection of sake brewed with great care, you will be able to compare and taste four different types of sake recommended by Kumazawa Shuzou, including junmai ginjo, products made with the company's own rice and yeast, and seasonal sakes.

Enjoy the mellow and elegant aroma of sake as it is poured in front of you.

Kumazawa Shuzou produces high quality sake that is handmade and produced in small quantities.

As the only brewery in Chigasaki, Shonan, Kumazawa Shuzou aims to produce sake that symbolizes the food culture of "Shonan".

For that, Kumazawa Shuzou's sake is made with the concept of a refreshing, lingering taste with a strong rice flavor and a clean, crisp finish that goes well with a wide variety of dishes, not to mention fresh local seafood.

As a brewery rooted in the community, they are also particular about locally grown rice, and have contracted with farmers in Shonan to cultivate rice.

In order to protect the remaining rice paddies in the area, Kumawaza Shuzou took over abandoned rice paddies and gradually expanded them,

which is now total approximately 9,000 tsubo ( about 3 hectares ).

"Tensei" is the signature brand of Kumazawa Shuzou.

In addition to the four regular products sold throughout the year, there are also a number of limited edition products with special characteristics in terms of rice, yeast, and production method.

The brewing water is made from subsoil water from the Sagamigawa and Sakawagawa rivers in the Tanzawa Mountain Range.

The rice used for brewing is, with a few exceptions, "Yamada-Nishiki", "Gohyakumangoku", and other rice suitable for sake brewing.

The name "Tensei" is taken from a phrase used by the Chinese emperor of the 5th Later Zhou Dynasty to describe "the ideal color of celadon".

The sake is brewed with the aim of achieving a taste that is as refreshing as it is penetrating, and full of moisture.

This sake has a dignified and refreshing taste.

While enjoying the sake tasting experience, please enjoy pairing the sake with delicious snacks specially made by the brewery, such as cream cheese with ginjo sake lees, pickled wasabi with sake lees, and more.

The tasting experience is the first step in learning more about sake.

You will be able to feel the depth of sake as you unravel the story behind the sake.

By tasting multiple types of sake, you will learn about your own preferences for sake, which you may not have known before, and enjoy sake even further.

Learning about the differences in aroma and taste will surely enhance your sake selection experience.

A unique Craft Beer Tasting (comparison tasting of multiple beers) Experience

As another Tasting (comparison tasting of multiple alcoholic beverages) Experience, instead of sake, you can also choose a Craft Beer Tasting Experience.

Kumazawa Shuzou's involvement in the craft brewery business was inspired by the craft beer culture that the current brewery owner, Shigeyoshi Kumazawa experienced in the United States.

Using the rich nature, famous water from the Tanzawa mountain range, and brewing techniques honed through sake brewing, Kumazawa Shuzou uses carefully selected ingredients and brews in the traditional German way.

It is a fresh, pure beer that is unfiltered and never heat-treated.

The pure, fresh taste of unfiltered, non-heat-treated, live yeast is now widely loved as Shonan's representative craft beer.

Mr. Kumazawa traveled to Germany to recruit beer brewing partners.

Together with the applicants, he traveled all over Germany to finalize the concept.

The result is "Shonan Beer", a pure, fresh-tasting beer made without filtration or heat treatment.

"Shonan Beer" includes Pilsner, Schwarz, Golden Ale, and IPA. In addition, about 40 types of beer are brewed each year, including beers made with local Shonan fruits and other local products, as well as beer made in collaboration with other breweries.

From the Shonan Beer lineup with its pure flavor, you will compare and taste three craft beers recommended by the brewer.

Enjoy pairing with delicious snacks such as homemade sausages, bacon, bread paired with beer, etc., which are unique to the brewery.

Sake and cuisine prepared by the brewery using local ingredients

A luxurious moment to savor sake and cuisine in a renovated sake brewery

After the guided tour, the second choice of experience to enjoy the region's beloved sake, is a Pairing Experience of Sake and Brewery cuisine at a restaurant in a renovated sake brewery.

The venue is the restaurant "Kuramoto Ryori Tensei," named after Kumazawa Shuzou's representative brand "Tensei".

The restaurant offers a unique experience of "Kuramoto (Brewery) cuisine", using local rice, water, and vegetables, as well as sake lees and sake koji, which are produced during the sake brewing process.

In the calm atmosphere of the renovated Taisho era (1912-1926) sake brewery, you can enjoy the pairing course of the brewery's cuisine, which focuses on local rice, water, fish, and vegetables, with Kumazawa Shuzou`s sake, allowing you to experience the four seasons in Japan.

The dishes served as a course will change depending on the season.

After an aperitif of "Shonan Beer" or "Sparkling Sake," a total of seven types of sake are paired with appetizers, entrées, side dishes, and meat and fish dishes.

You can also taste the brewery's unique sake which has not been commercialized.

Kumazawa Shuzou has been in business for 152 years.

Please enjoy the "rich" flavor that has slowly taken root and accumulated over time.

A delightful limited offer. An exclusive souvenir for the Waka An Plan

All available experiences include an exclusive souvenir of the Waka An Plan.

"Tensei" brand Special Junmai (720ml)" Sake, a crisp, dry junmai sake with a refreshing aroma and fresh mouthfeel that goes perfectly with fish dishes.

For those who are not fond of alcohol, you can choose an assortment of original sweets sold at MOKICHI Baker & Sweets, a bread and baked goods store on the premises.

The contents of the assortment include three items: "Nerikasu Chocolat Cookies," "Sakekasu Pound Cake," and "Sakekasu Custard Pudding", all using sake lees from the brewery.

( Contents may change depending on the season ).

The lineup, which is unique to the sake brewery with a slight aroma of sake lees, is a gem that will make even the most discerning sweets lover swoon.

You will also be able to take home a special glass as a souvenir to remember this experience when you go home and enjoy the "Tensei" brand sake.

Whether you are toasting with your travel companions while reminiscing, or enjoying it alone in silence, please take the time to enjoy Kumazawa Shuzou's sake after you return home.

Enjoy the whole experience in stress-free English

Limited to the Waka An plan, all experiences, including guided tours of the sake brewery area and historic buildings, as well as all the other interesting stories, such as sake tasting, and sake and brewery cuisine pairing experiences, will be fully supported in English by a " Kamakura Local ",

with native-like English ability, and is a lover of Japanese culture, and has been involved in international business for over 35 years with the motto "to be a bridge between Japan and overseas".

Of course, you will also receive support for all the interpretation throughout the entire experience, allowing you to fully enjoy the experience without language barriers.

Enjoy the stress-free experience without the language barrier, that only Waka An can offer.

Kumazawa Shuzou (Kumazawa Brewery) is a fusion of a history and new values, loved not only by fans of sake and beer, but also by many people, especially local residents.

Enjoy a moment to fully appreciate its charms, in this nostalgic space that makes you forget about hassles of everyday life .