Buko Shuzo Brewery, Yanagida Flagship Store

Buko Shuzo, Yanagida Flagship Store an old sake brewery in the Chichibu region, founded in 1753. It is a brewer of Buko Masamune, a sake named after Mount Buko, the renowned peak of Chichibu. Buildings that exist today consist of the sake brewing cellar, grain storehouse, and aging cellar that were constructed over several years by the eighth-generation owner. The shop retains the appearance of the oldest storefront remaining in the valleys of Chichibu Valley, designated as a Nationally Registered Tangible Cultural Property. From the water well inside the property, that appears in the Chichibu folktale “Nanatsu Ido” (seven wells), springs the groundwater from Mount Buko that has been selected as one of Japan’s Top 100 Heisei-era Springs. The local sake brewed with this fine water is renowned, earning the reputation “There is fine sake in Bushu-Chichibu”. Located only a three-minute walk from the Chichibu Station, this charming small brewery offers ongoing sake tastings and reservation-based brewery tours. Visitors are also allowed to take home some of the brewing water.