Some example of Sake tour ( this one is not in Tokyo.)

You know suntory Yamazaki whiskey distiller opens to the public (cost something like 1000JPY for 80 minutes and reservation needed ) and you can taste?

The similar factory tour available at beer breweries as well, such as Sapporo beer, Asahi beer, Kirin beer and Suntry Beer.  

The same goes to many Sake (Japanese rice wine) breweries.

You can visit Sake factory to learn about Sake production process and also sake tasting. This type of visit is called "きき酒/Kikizake".

There are several places you can try in/near Tokyo. You will find where and how to get there.

We visited several sake factory and one of them is relatively close to the center of Tokyo. The sake factory is called Ozawa sake factory ( their brand is "Sawanoi").

The sake factory is around 2 hours from Shinjuku station. you take JR Chuo line then change to Ome line at Tachikawa station and get off at Sawai station. The factory is 5 min walk from the station.

You need to reserve your place for the visit. 

How you book it?

You can book it by calling +81 428 78 8215 or online form.

It is closed on Monday (usually). 

Their busy seasons are May, October and November. 

Great thing is it is free of charge and you can also taste the sake there. It is not all you can drink :).

There is a sake bar (きき酒処 / kikisakedokoro) type of place in the factory area where you can buy and taste around 10 types of Sake from the factory. You do not need to attend the tour to go to this sake bar. If you are only interested in tasting, just go to the bar area which is on the 2nd floor of Sawanoi Garden gallery in the garden area near the river. The bar opens at 10:30AM and closes at 16:30, all day closed on Monday (+81 0428-78-8210).

Caution: In Japan, you can NOT drive when you drink (even a drop of alcohol)

It is only 40min by train from Shinjuku or Ikebukuro, Tokyo.  You get off at Higashimurayama station and walk for 15-20mins.

This factory runs Sake festival sometimes. You get the ticket online the price is 1500JPY. Here is the link to buy the ticket. The next date 19 of Nov, 2017 (as of the date of this article).

The official website announces the info on the festival from time to time. 

Tel: +81 42-391-0601

The factory loses on Sunday and national holiday (check their website to see if they are open)

This is the only sake factory in the central Tokyo. It has around 140 year history.

Their main brand is "Marushin-Masamune" which uses a spring water in Tokyo.

As of 31st of Jan, 2018, we learnt that this brewery closes down its business. Read more on this article. So you need to pay attention if this tour is still on or not at the time of your planned visit.

With their tour, you can NOT go into their factory. You go there and watch some video about Sake and try some sake. The cost is 500 JPY ( you need to be 5 people group or bigger.)

You get off at Akabane-Iwabuchi station of Tokyo Metro line and walk for 3-5mins or get off at Akabane station of JR line and walk for 20-30mins.

The official website

Tel.  +81 3-3902-3451

Opening hour: 08:30AM- 17:30

Closed on Sat, Sun and national holiday

You can purchase Marushin-Masamune from the below link

In 1851 Matsuoka sake factory was founded. Their main brand is called Mikado-Matsu(帝松).

It is a Sake factory tour free of charge. For booking, please use this form. If no response after you email, you need to call them up.

Beside a normal sake factory tour, this brewery has the Mikadomatsu Sakagura festival at their factory  on the last Sunday of every February.

The festival usually starts at 10:00AM. You can get a lot of tasting, enjoy some Japanese foods and music from the local high school. The most important is that you can test the freshest sake made for that year. On this festival day there is a shuttle bus running between the factory and Ogawamachi station.

You get off at Ogawamachi station of Tobu Tojo line and walk for 30mins.

The official website (in English)

Tel.  +81 493-72-1234

Opening hour: 09:30AM- 17:00

Closed on 1st-4th of Jan

Bukou sake factory was founded around 260 years ago. 

It is a Sake factory tour free of charge. You need to call them up to book. Normally 10 people need to be there to carry out the factory tour but sometimes possible if not many.

The tour duration is around 40mins.

You get off at Chichibu station of JR and walk for 3 mins or get off at Seibu Chichibu station of Seibu ine and walk for 20mins.  It is also in a walking distance from the factory to the famous Chichibu shrine.

The official website (in Japanese)

Tel.  +81 494-22-0046

Opening hour: 08:00AM- 17:30

Closed on 1st-3rd of Jan. Better call up to see if open on the day you want to visit.

The founder came from Shiga and chose Gyoda city because it had great and tasty water.  He first got the training at one brewery in Nihonbashi, Tokyo (Edo) and then founded this brewery in 1805. Not to forget his training and not to cease making effort for improvement, he named his sake "Nihonbashi".

It is a Sake factory tour free of charge. You need to call them up to book.

The best time for the tour is from mid Dec till mid Feb where the new sake being made. Better call them up to make sure the tour is on.

You get off at Gyoda station of Chichibu line and walk for 3 mins.

The official website (in Japanese)

Tel.  +81 048-556-6111

Opening hour: 09:00AM- 16:00

Closed Usually open. Better call up to see if open on the day you want to visit.

When overseas or even at normal Japanese bar "Izakaya", we notice you can not really try "real Japanese sake". You can only get some fake Sake from the big factories. 

Want to try real Japanese sake? We launched the only authentic Japanese sake subscription service. Every month we send you the box of sake which are categorized "real Japanese rice wine".

The price is 400USD per month. You will get 2-3 bottles each time. Here is the details of the Real Sake subscription service.

If interested, you can contact and register with us.

We hope that you find our article helpful. If you want to learn more about Japanese sake, feel free to talk to us. 

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How to tell good/real sake from others? Beginner's tip.

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