Gunma Prefecture 2025
We held a one-day tour of sake breweries in Gunma Prefecture for ALTs (English Language Teachers).
Following last year's success, we again conducted a one-day sake brewery and industry experience tour for ALTs (Assistant Language Teachers) residing in Japan, commissioned by the National Tax Agency.
This time, we visited Tsuchida Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. with six ALTs who had been assigned to Gunma Prefecture from the United States and Canada.
First, Mr. Hama of Tsuchida Sake Brewery explained the basic processes and philosophy of sake brewing.
The brewery uses edible rice for all its brewing processes and continues the traditional kimoto method, highlighting the deep involvement of microorganisms in the brewery in fermentation.
The participants listened with surprise and interest to the explanation that "microorganisms brought in by visitors also affect the taste of the sake."
After the tour, we paired three types of sake with three distinct snacks—dried squid, beef jerky, and sake lees cookies—to experience the changes and diversity of flavors.
The sake from Tsuchida Sake Brewery, which we visited this time, had a different taste from the sake from other breweries we had visited, and many participants commented that they "realized just how deep and diverse the world of sake is."
We at Tsuchida Sake Brewery are also pleased that we were able to provide an opportunity to deepen understanding of Japanese culture through this project.
Tsuchida Sake Brewery
2691 Kawaba Yuhara, Kawaba-mura, Tone-gun, Gunma 378-0102, Japan
