After leaving Nagaoka Station and walking along the river bank for about 20 minutes, a towering chimney comes into view. A heavy brick building built in the Taisho era and designated as a national tangible cultural property, this is Aoi Shuzo (formerly Takahashi Shuzo).
We spoke to him about the background of his big decision to enter a different industry and take over the management of a sake brewery, and about what it was like brewing sake in a new location for the first time.

I spoke to this person

Aoi Shuzo Co., Ltd. Representative Risa Aoki (left) and master brewer Tatsuya Abe (right)

Profile

Risa Aoki: Born in Mie Prefecture in 1986. After working for financial companies in Japan and overseas, she joined Tatenokawa Sake Brewery (Yamagata Prefecture) in 2021. After leaving the company, she spent about a year and a half preparing, and in 1 took over Takahashi Sake Brewery in Nagaoka City and became its representative.

Tatsuya Abe: Born in Yamagata Prefecture in 1991. After graduating from high school, he joined Tatenokawa Shuzo (Yamagata Prefecture). In 2017, he served as the production manager for the representative brand "Aguriji" at the subsidiary Ouu Jiman (Yamagata Prefecture). After working at another company within the group, he joined Aoi Shuzo as the chief brewer.

A transition from the financial industry and a group of specialists

Representative Aoki-san has built a career in the financial industry both in Japan and overseas. Why did he decide to switch to the sake brewing industry and even take over the management of a sake brewery?

Aoki-san: "I worked in Singapore for a while, but when I returned to Japan due to COVID-19, I thought about what I wanted to do with my life and decided that I wanted to be involved with alcohol, which I've always loved. I also wanted to spread the good things about Japan that I felt abroad, so I decided to work with sake."

Later, he had the opportunity to work as a business planner at a sake brewery in Yamagata Prefecture, and while working there, he began to think about how he wanted to have his own brewery someday. In Japan, new sake brewing licenses are not issued, so if you want to operate a new sake brewery, the only way is to buy the license of an existing brewery.
After he was forced to resign due to a change in management policy at the sake brewery where he had been working, he began searching for a sake brewery looking for a buyer. After about a year and a half, he ended up taking over Takahashi Sake Brewery, which has a history of over 1 years in Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture.

So Aoki consulted Abe, who also had experience as a chief brewer at a sake brewery in Yamagata Prefecture. At the time, Abe had left sake brewing due to a transfer within the group company, and was considering changing jobs to return to sake brewing. After hearing Aoki's story, he made up his mind. Determined to dedicate his life to sake brewing, he left his family behind in Yamagata Prefecture and moved to Niigata Prefecture alone.

Scenery of Nagaoka City with its storehouses

Aoki's younger brother, Kaito, who was a rice farmer in Mie Prefecture, joined the team as the person in charge of rice cultivation. In addition, Masayuki Doi, who had moved from a major advertising agency to a sake brewery and then worked in Germany, moved to Niigata Prefecture as the person in charge of marketing, and the team was completed. Aoki looks back on the team, which was made up of specialists from various fields, as follows.
"It's really strange, but by chance, everyone's timing coincided and we were able to form a great team. If we had missed this opportunity, I think we would have all gone our separate ways."

Thus, sake brewing under the new system will begin in December 2024, and in February 12, the company will change its name to Aoi Shuzo and get off to a new start.

With 160 years of experience

Aoki had this to say about what made him decide to take over Takahashi Sake Brewery:
"The size of the land was important to us because it directly relates to the possibility of expansion. Other important factors for sake brewing were that it is a rice-producing region and has cold winters. We thought that the good accessibility from the Tokyo metropolitan area and the snowfall would be a plus when we focus on tourism."

This three-story storehouse has been designated a tangible cultural property. The interior is made of concrete, which allows it to maintain a stable temperature and humidity.

However, it is not easy for a young person from a different industry to take over a sake brewery with a long history. Since he had been involved in supporting business succession in his previous job, he had no resistance to the formalities, but he took time to make sure that the people around him understood his personality and his thoughts on management, and to build a relationship of trust.
"I didn't think I could gain the trust of the owner after just meeting him once or twice, so I presented my ideas to him on multiple occasions and sometimes even had drinks with him to deepen our relationship."

From Takahashi Shuzo, where regular sake for evening drinks accounted for the majority of production, to Aoi Shuzo, which features modern flavors and luxurious designs. Although the brewing method has changed significantly, Abe says, "I think this is the best brew of the year, based on the history of sake brewing that has continued for over 160 years since the company was founded."
Aoki also replied, "We're using the original brewery buildings and equipment as they are, so I think that the essence of that is present in our sake."
"It is said that one of the purposes of M&A is to 'buy time,' which generally refers to buying time that will be used in the future, such as shortening the time it takes to get a business on track. In our case, I think it is very significant that we are taking over the history of the brewery, including the time that has been accumulated in the past."

Brick chimneys that have become part of the local scenery

He feels that the local people are more pleased than he imagined that he has taken over the sake brewery, which has been a beloved symbol of the area. In fact, when the author visited the brewery for an interview, two women who appeared to be out for a walk asked him to pass on a message to Aoki, saying, "We live around here, please tell Mr. Aoki that we support him." This touched the warm feelings of the local people.

From Yamagata to Niigata: The hardships of the first year

As the environment changed from Yamagata to Niigata, did the taste of the sake they brew change at all? We asked Abe.
"This is probably due to the water, but the sake made in Niigata has less bitterness, a shorter aftertaste, and a sharper finish. I think it's become easier to create the flavor I'm looking for."

On the other hand, there were many difficulties in the first year as I was setting things up in a new environment.
"Because the equipment was old, we had a lot of trouble until bottling was complete, and it was nerve-wracking every time. For example, right after we moved into the brewery, the boiler that we had been using for 28 years broke down and we couldn't steam the rice, and we also found a hole in the plate of the press just before the rice was pressed into the brewery."

(Photo courtesy of Aoi Shuzo)

He got through these difficult times with the help of his fellow brewers. He plans to start investing in new equipment this spring when brewing is complete, but rather than replacing everything with the latest machines, he wants to preserve the "fluctuations" that come from a lot of manual labor. "I want to make sake that has a human touch, not an industrial product."

Experimental brand "Maison Aoi Untitled"

This year will be the first for Aoi Shuzo, and they will be experimenting with a variety of flavors to determine the characteristics of the brewery and water, and to explore the direction of future sake brewing.
The brand for this purpose is "Maison Aoi Untitled." In order to leave it up to the drinker to judge the taste, the specifications have been kept secret and the name has been intentionally left without a title. The company also paid special attention to the design and bottle, with the desire to "deliver to those who do not drink sake."

The clear, shiny, beautiful glass cap was imported from the Czech Republic. "Of course the contents are important, but we also wanted to make the experience itself special," says Aoki.

At the time of the interview (March 2025, 3), 24 and 01,02, which use Miyamanishiki rice with different polishing ratios, and 03, which uses Dewasansan, have already been released. We will introduce the sake currently on sale along with Abe's comments.

Maison Aoi Untitled 03
"It was brewed using Dewa Sansan rice imported from my hometown of Yamagata. With gentle rice nuances and a refreshing accent of citrus acidity, it's the perfect sake for spring."

(Photo courtesy of Aoi Shuzo)

Maison Aoi Untitled 03 UF
"UF stands for Un Filtered, and this is a limited edition unpasteurized sake from 03. It has a gentle, somewhat nostalgic flavor produced by Dewa Sansan."

(Photo courtesy of Aoi Shuzo)

The "Maison Aoi Untitled" series also plans to release products from 04 onwards that use other varieties of rice this season.

Pioneering the future of the sake brewing industry with new-age teamwork

Having realized his dream of "doing what he loves as a job" and embarking on a new challenge with the expectations of many people on his shoulders, Aoki shared his outlook for the future.

"In the short term, I would like to focus on rice cultivation starting in the spring on the rice fields that my younger brother rented. We will start with Gohyakumangoku rice and eventually grow various kinds of rice."
They are also already looking at exporting their products overseas, not just domestically. At an export business meeting held in conjunction with the Niigata Sake no Jin festival in March, they received offers from overseas buyers saying they would like to meet with them.

A view of the rice fields that Aoki's younger brother, Kaito, cultivated in Mie Prefecture (Photo courtesy of Aoi Shuzo)

Meanwhile, in the long term, he has plans to take on trainees and train them as sake brewers. This idea, which will lead to the development of not only his own company but the entire industry, became even more strongly felt after he became a sake brewer himself and experienced the reality of an aging workforce.
"People often say to me, 'You've come to such a declining industry,' but I obviously don't think that's the case, which is why I decided to enter the industry. I hope that by doing well, people who enter the industry in the future will be able to imagine a bright future."

Abe also expressed his enthusiasm, saying, "Teaching trainees will also help us improve our own skills, so we would like to actively accept them." Furthermore, he prefaced his remarks by saying, "It's still a bit vague" about the construction.
"The industry as a whole is moving back to the old ways, like kimoto and wooden barrels, and that's important, but I want to do something that's ahead of the curve. I don't yet have a clear answer as to whether that's the brewing method or the quality of the sake, but I want to delve deeper into the profound world of fermentation."

The four of them gathered for the photo shoot and seemed to be having fun from start to finish in a friendly atmosphere. There was no strict hierarchical relationship, and they all thought about and brewed the ideal sake together on an equal footing, creating a new form of teamwork in the sake brewery.

This spring, a new chapter in the history of Aoi Shuzo begins, building on the long history of Takahashi Shuzo. I can't wait to see what story will unfold from now on.

Writer: Kanon Urabe

Living in Niigata Prefecture / Sake sommelier, sake sommelier, shochu sommelier
I worked for a government agency supporting the export of food products, including sake, and now I work as a freelance writer. I like craft sake, which has a pronounced sweet and sour flavor, and sake made with additional ingredients.https://www.foriio.com/k-urabe