About Us
KATAYAMA SAKE BREWERY
about us
Katayama Sake Brewery is a small but dedicated sake brewery in Nikko that specializes in Genshu (unfiltered, unpasteurized, and undiluted sake). Come and visit the brewery to learn about how sake is made using traditional methods and sample fresh sake.
OUR HISTORY
In 1879, our founder sought land with better quality water than his home in Niigata, and opened a sake brewery in this area. The current brewer is the seventh generation of this family.
Our sake is made the traditional way, through a series of delicate, manual processes. Most notably, we do not use machines to press our sake, typical in modern breweries. Instead, we slowly and carefully apply pressure manually to produce a mild and smooth sake. This method is very rare today.
Because we are a small brewery, most of our products can only be purchased at the brewery.
OUR water and rice
We use groundwater from Nikko, which is ideal for producing mild, smooth sake.
For sake rice, we use Yamada-Nishiki from Hyogo Prefecture. This rice is soft and easy to polish, and produces a well-balanced, rich-tasting sake. 60-70% of the rice used to brew our sake is sourced locally from Tochigi prefecture, mainly the Yumesasara and Gohyakumangoku rice varieties.
