[Kubota Sake Brewery] is a long-established sake brewery with a history of 270 years, located between Maruoka Castle and surrounded by the Hakusan Mountains and the Takeda River. It was founded in the 3rd year of the Horeki era, and has a history of 270 years. Mr. Naokuni, the 11th generation head of the family, asks what is local sake? He asked himself, ``Maybe only something brewed with local rice and water could be called local sake,'' and he set up a production system that focused on using local ingredients. The representative brand, ``Fukukoma,'' is one of the most famous sake brands in Fukui. On a tour of the sake brewery, you can experience its origins.

"First of all, koji. Koji is the lifeblood of sake," says the owner, Naokuni Kubota, who leads a tour of the sake brewery that is easy to understand and full of things to see. Photos posted inside the facility are used to explain and visualize the important points of sake brewing, and the pamphlet distributed includes several pages illustrating the brewing process. By the time the friendly tour was over, the quality of the sake had improved significantly. ``I want people to become interested in sake and love it,'' he says, and because he loves sake, he is working to popularize it.

A must-see is the koji-making machine developed in-house. I don't often hear of breweries that even make machines. The koji room, the room where koji is made, has a systematic appearance that is different from other breweries. It was apparently created by the previous generation in their pursuit of sake brewing.

Now, ``I want to understand how the rice I use is produced,'' so they even grow their own rice, and over 8% of it is grown in the rice paddies next to the warehouse. The reason they are able to produce sake they are confident in is because they use rice they grow themselves, underground water that gushes from the area, and koji that is reliably produced using a machine they developed themselves.

Some products incorporate the traditional bag-squeezing method for the squeezing process. It was originally supposed to be made only for events, but the mayor liked it so much that he continues to make it by request. ``I can't make a lot, so I can't make any money,'' he told me with a laugh.
When you try it, you'll be surprised at how mellow the sake is, and how the flavor can vary so much depending on how it's squeezed, even if it's the same brand of sake.
Liqueurs made with Japanese sake will also be available for tasting. They have developed products that have been well-received by tasting them at events in various places, and have commercialized them. I felt the desire that ``I want people to drink sake and fall in love with it,'' which has been passed down from generation to generation.