[Thinking about life in a faraway land] How a sake brewery senses the arrival of winter. A conversation with Azumamine Sake Brewery in Iwate

The change of seasons, which once felt gradual, now feels sudden. Still, we should pay attention to the small changes in nature and feel that our lives are connected to the seasons.

With this in mind, MCKK wanted to provide reading material that would draw attention to the changing seasons and nature.

We will talk to people in the manufacturing and primary industries, whose work is rooted in the land and who live in harmony with the workings of nature, to learn about the changing seasons and the way of life in the region. By imagining the work and life in various faraway places through reading material, we hope to broaden our imaginations about the seasons together. In today's age, where communication and information move too quickly, we hope to be able to have exchanges with people from various places, like a slower correspondence, where we show concern for each other's lives.

Our first guest was Gen Sato, the representative of Azumamine Sake Brewery, the oldest sake brewery in Iwate Prefecture, which operates in Shiwa Town. In a lively manner, he spoke about his work and life in Shiwa Town.

When the water is not cold to the touch, you know it's the sake brewing season.

When we asked, "Do the Ou Mountains look big when you're in Shiwa Town?", Sato Gen (nicknamed Gen-san) replied with a laugh, "I've been seeing a lot of bears walking around lately. That's what's more surprising." With a playful attitude, he told us about life in the town, even though we haven't been there yet.

Shiwa Town in Iwate Prefecture, where the brewery is located, is one of the leading "sake towns" in the Tohoku region. It is known as the birthplace of the "Nambu Toji" brewery, the largest group of brewers in Japan, and traditional sake brewing is carried out using water obtained from the abundant water veins that flow from Mount Higashine. Among these, Azumamine Sake Brewery is one of the most prestigious breweries, with a history of over 340 years.

When we spoke in early November, the brewery, located near the mountains, had a beautiful view of autumn leaves. "We haven't had much autumn this year. When it suddenly gets cold, the leaves turn a beautiful crimson red."

Mount Higashine towers over the brewery, and the Takiname River flows through it, originating in the Ou Mountains. "Why is a sake brewery built there? It's mostly because there's delicious water there," says Moto-san. The 340-year-old Azumamine Sake Brewery was originally located in a different place until about 200 years ago, but they moved because "the water here is better." The groundwater near the brewery supports sake brewing.

"Groundwater is cold in the summer. The temperature of groundwater changes very little, so it feels cold or warm depending on the difference with the outside temperature."

In Shiwa Town, frost forms on the ground in November and some mornings can drop to nearly 0°C.

"When I touch the water and realize it's not cold, I realize that the sake brewing season is about to begin."

How to cope with sake brewing without autumn

For the past few years, just when you think the long, long summer is over, the temperature suddenly drops and before you know it, winter has arrived. This sudden change of seasons, which can be felt even in urban areas, also affects the work of sake brewing.

"This year it was summer until around the end of September. Then in October it got a little cooler and we were talking about how comfortable it was, but before we knew it it felt like winter. Usually, as it gets a little colder, I think 'it's almost here' and my excitement for sake brewing gradually increases, but this year I suddenly thought 'It's already sake brewing season!?' (laughs)"

The temperature difference, which surprises people, is also reflected in the condition of the rice.

"The rice will come in, and then I'll assess it and think about what the quality will be this year. In years with extreme heat, the rice will suffer from summer fatigue. It tries to absorb moisture to replenish itself, but when it's too hot, it becomes thin. By the summer, I was already thinking, 'This year isn't going to be any good.'"

Sake brewing begins with rice, and one can imagine that the quality of the rice is a major issue for a sake brewery, but Moto-san explains it in a surprisingly straightforward manner.

"If the rice is in bad condition, then it's no good, but if we can brew sake in a way that suits that, I believe we can make something that is accordingly good. There must be a way to brew sake in cold weather and a way to brew sake in hot weather, and we just have to keep finding that. Even if we hear about the scorching heat and no autumn, we want to do what we can, knowing that we are a brewery living in such times."

In fact, although Azumamine Sake Brewery has a history of 340 years, there aren't many documents left about old sake brewing. That's why we saw Moto-san trying to face the land and climate while searching for the brewing methods of his time.

"I think nature does everything well. When there's frost, I think it's cold, but at that time of year we can harvest a delicious type of spinach called 'cold spinach.' So when I wake up in the morning and see frost, I immediately think, 'Oh, spinach...' (laughs)"

You can decide for yourself whether you feel dark or bright, sad or happy. When you hear Moto speak, you naturally come to think that way.

"I think if we think positively, we can live with natural phenomena."

Give it a try, food is an adventure

As we talked, our appetites grew, and we began to want to know more about the sake made at Azumamine Sake Brewery and how to enjoy it. They use carefully selected sake rice from Iwate and produce a variety of sake using various methods. What is the best way to enjoy sake brands such as "Azumamine"?

When I casually asked him about the recommended way to drink it, Moto-san gave me some firm advice.

"That's the place where you have the most freedom, and I want you to have fun."

You can't know what kind of alcohol it is until you try it. Listening to Moto-san's words, I felt that getting to know the taste of alcohol by listening to other people's opinions is the same as walking through their lives from the other side.

"I think trying out and thinking about what kind of alcohol it is and what food would go well with it is an adventure in itself."

"You all have to find the truth for yourself," Moto-san said, and we couldn't help but nod in agreement from our faraway lands. We learned about Moto-san's lifestyle, not only in Shiwa Town, but also in making delicious sake and enjoying food.

This time's interview location: Azumamine Sake Brewery

This sake brewery is located in Shiwa Town, Iwate Prefecture. Founded in 1684, it is the oldest brewery in the Nanbu region, and has passed down traditional techniques from generation to generation, cherishing meticulous, handcrafted sake brewing, from preparation to labeling. They use carefully selected sake rice cultivated under contract with local sake rice farmers, and in order to maximize the rice's flavor and to enjoy its pairing with Iwate's rich ingredients, they deliberately suppress the ginjo aroma (a fruity aroma) to create a sake that suits connoisseurs' tastes. Their flagship brand, "Azumamine," was named with the hope that it would be enjoyed for a long time, just like Mt. Azumane, a mountain located behind the brewery.
https://azumamine.com/

The "Azumamine Brewery Gathering 2026" will be held at a hot spring inn on Saturday, March 7th, 2026, at Hotel Mori no Kaze Oshuku in Iwate, where you can enjoy Azumamine sake and local ingredients to your heart's content. For more details, please visit the website.
https://azumamine.com/kakomukai2026/

MCKK first encountered Azumamine Sake Brewery through the skin care brand "1684," which uses sake lees produced at Azumamine Sake Brewery and was born from the desire to "spread the appeal of Japanese sake to a wider audience." The skin care items are made using highly nutritious sake lees, making the most of the "beauty" of the ingredients themselves.
https://1684.jp/