We have been making sake for over 110 years using abundant sake rice and Kannon water.

The founder, Torajiro Utsunomiya, established his own sake brewery in his hometown of Uwa-machi in 1910. Before that, he had been brewing sake with an acquaintance in a neighboring town.

The former town of Uwa is blessed with a rich natural environment in a mountain basin with extreme temperature differences, and has long been known as a grain-producing region where rice cultivation has flourished. In addition to an abundance of sake rice, the area has characteristics suited to sake brewing, such as the availability of soft, gentle-tasting water flowing from the Shikoku Mountains as underground water. It is said that the founder decided to set up the brewery here for these reasons.

At the time of its founding, there were more than 30 sake breweries in the old Uwa Town. Among them, Utsunomiya Shuzo uses Kannon Water, one of Japan's 1 famous waters, which boasts a water volume of 8,000 tons per day, as the brewing water for the yeast starter, and has continued to brew sake in a way that is only possible in this area.

"Chidori" and "Hanakami" made with sake rice and soft water from Ehime Prefecture

The representative brand "Chidori", which has been handed down since the brewery's founding, takes its name from Onikubo, the land where the brewery is located. In ancient times, Onikubo was a marshland where the beautiful scene of flocks of plovers taking off and returning to their nests could be seen in the red sky at dusk was observed, hence the name "Chidori". The fourth-generation owner Shigeaki asked poet Sakamura Shinmin to write the title on the sake label. It is made mainly from Ehime Prefecture-grown sake rice "Matsuyama Mitsui", "Shizukuhime", and "Ai no Yume", and is characterized by its soft taste, making it a perfect sake to be enjoyed with meals. It is said to go well with fish dishes in general.

Another representative brand is "Hanakami." In 1989, fourth-generation owner Utsunomiya Shigeaki attempted to produce sake using pink yeast, resulting in a gorgeous sake. It is lightly pink in color and has an appealing sweet taste, almost like it has fruit in it. It has a clean finish and is easy to drink even for sake novices, making it a good aperitif.

From Uwa to the world, as a leader in the Japanese sake culture that paves the way for a new era

With permission from novelist Ryotaro Shiba, "Hanakami" is named after the novel of the same name, which has a deep connection to the Uwa region. This is a masterpiece that strongly conveys the fourth generation's spirit of challenge and his love for his hometown, wanting to promote sake from Uwa to the world.

Utsunomiya Sake Brewery is located in Uwa, a region famous for its sake brewing, and is passing on traditions to the future. The current fifth-generation owner is actively working to pioneer new eras of sake brewing, such as by renovating the aging koji room and seeking cooperation from sake fans to revive the legendary pure rice ginjo sake "Yamato Raku," which was produced over 5 years ago.
Furthermore, through his interactions with prominent figures in Japanese literature, he continues to fulfill his responsibility as a bearer of not only sake culture, but also Japanese culture, and will continue to expand its potential from Uwa to the world.