I stopped by the sake brewery open house festival.
There were stalls and food trucks selling Chichibu specialties like fried chicken, yakisoba, konjac, and miso potatoes, adding to the festive atmosphere. But the main attraction was the grand sake tasting event, where you could drink 10 small cups for 1000 yen.
The staff seemed to be sake brewers and brewery workers, I think?
They looked like they were having a great time working at the festival. The sunny and warm weather made the sake taste even better.
I like sake, but to be honest, I don't really know much about the taste. Even I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you for the delicious food!
I visited on a tour after being invited by a family member. I'm not sure if it was exclusive to the tour, but we were able to sample some drinks. I'm not particularly fond of sake or shochu, so I bought some yuzu liqueur and some snacks. They were delicious.
I made a reservation by phone in advance at Yao Honten in Chichibu City, Saitama Prefecture, and enjoyed a tour of the sake brewery museum, tasting, and purchasing sake on Sunday.
It was about a 30-minute ride on the Gururin bus from Seibu Chichibu Station.
This sake brewery is quite old, founded in 1749 (Kanei 2). During the brewery tour, we were shown the brewing room, which is kept at a constant 12°C year-round. It felt quite cold!
The sake brewery museum (admission fee 200 yen for adults, 100 yen with a JAF membership card) offered fascinating exhibits showcasing the brewery's approximately 270-year history. (Is the mannequin handsome? (^_^;))
* Old accounting office and tools
* Old sake brewing paintings
* History of Chichibu Nishiki
* Sake brewing tools
* Sake vessels
* Small sake brewing tools
* Interesting sake brewing tools
* About the Toji (The Toji of this brewery is from Iwate Prefecture) (Moisture content)
• Introduction and paintings by the three artists
• Celebration masu (wooden sake cup)
It was also great that we could sample sake, shochu, plum wine, and craft beer produced here, as well as pickles and other foods.
The sake was dry, perhaps due to the limestone from Mt. Bukō.
The craft beer was easy to drink and delicious, and the plum wine was sweet and tasty.
Furthermore, it was great that we could purchase not only sake, but also Chichibu's specialty pickled plums and honey.
I headed to Chichibu Nishiki in search of a participating store in the Sake Stamp Book. Despite the words "store exclusive," I was most interested in the Honjozo freshly pressed Chichibu Nishiki!
You can sample sake in the store and even tour the brewery next door, so next time I'd like to come that way! You'll need a driver, though!
And Chichibu Nishiki...it was crisp and easy to drink, just the way I liked it!
This is a museum and directly managed sales outlet run by the brewery of the sake "Chichibu Nishiki." As the name museum suggests, there is no factory where the sake is made; only information on sake brewing is displayed here.
The store has a large parking lot and is easy to shop at. Stop by during your Chichibu sightseeing tour to try some sake tasting and then purchase your favorite sake.
In addition to koji, miso, pickles, snacks, and local beer, you can also purchase sake brewery T-shirts and soft serve ice cream with sake in it. You can also get a Chichibu tourist guidebook.
