Sake Brewery Tour: Taste Your Way Through Kobe’s Sake Mecca

If Osaka is known as the “kitchen of Japan,” then Kobe is, without a doubt, the “home of sake.” While Kobe beef might be the first thing that comes to most people’s minds, the international port city is also home to Nada Gogō, the largest sake-producing region in Japan. The combination of top-quality ingredients, ideal weather conditions, and centuries-old brewing techniques make for sake with a rich and refined flavor profile unlike any other.

Stops and sights include:

Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum

Kiku-Masamune Shuzo Kinenkan

Kiku Masamune Meister Factory

Sakuramasamune Kinenkan Sakuraen

Hamafukutsuru Ginjo Brewery

During this tour, you will visit three different breweries and sample a wide variety of sake before ending things on a chill note at a famous izakaya. This experience is perfect for food and drink enthusiasts looking for a tasting tour served with a dash of sake brewing history!

Kick off your adventure with a stop at the Hakutsuru Sake Brewery Museum, where you will learn about traditional sake brewing techniques passed down from generation to generation. Witness the delicate art of taru (barrel) sake making at the Kiku-Masamune Taru Meister Factory, kept alive by artisans since the Edo period. Each brewery also offers various types of popular Japanese sake, such as Junmai Daiginjo, for tasting. Top everything off with a stop at Hamadaya, a renowned liquor store-slash-standing bar in Kobe, where you can experience the kakuuchi, or in-store, drinking style. The simplicity and casualness of kakuuchi allow you to sample many varieties of sake and expand your horizons easily. Since Hamadaya is the last stop, you can take your time to savor each sip to your heart’s content.

Enjoy discovering your favorite type of sake, be it dry and robust or smooth and rounded. By the end of this tour, you’re bound to come away a true sake connoisseur!