Aizu Chujo Junmai Daigijo Tokujoshu
A castle town brewery, preserving history and inheriting craftsmanship.
This venerable brewery with over 200 years of history is rooted in the local community, with its Aizu craftspeople protecting traditional flavors using age-old techniques. In recent years, it has also embraced the challenge of new sake brewing led by a female master brewer. The sake crafted by Hiromitsu Maejima, who took over as Toji (master brewer) in 2021, won the Governor's Award at the Fukushima Prefecture Sake Appraisal in both 2022 and 2023. This is a brewery of great interest, where one can savor sake woven from both the ancient and the modern.
The brewery's roots trace back to the early Edo period. Its ancestor was a samurai who entered Aizu alongside the feudal lord, Masayuki Hoshina. The company name itself evokes this history: "Tsuru" (crane) represents Tsuruga Castle, and "Noe" (inlet) represents Lake Inawashiro. It exudes the pride of a brewery representing Aizu. "To see the 'face' of the sake." This is the company's brewing philosophy. It means to relentlessly watch over the changes in the sake, which is seen as a living entity. One can understand its essence by tasting the flagship brand "Aizuchuujou," which boasts an elegant and profound flavor.
The eldest daughter of the seventh-generation head, Hayashi Heihachiro, Yuri, is a master brewer. A graduate of the Tokyo University of Agriculture's Department of Brewing, she holds a qualification as a Sake Brewing Skills Technician. Working alongside her mother, Keiko, who holds the same qualification, she created the sake "Yuri."
It has gained acclaim and popularity as "a sake recommended for women, made by women." She actively travels outside the prefecture for tasting events, listening to the voices of consumers. Yuri speaks of her ambition: "I want to create sake that offers a moment of healing, a comforting drink for the end of the day."
Tsurunoe Sake Brewery
230 Years in the Castle Town of Aizuwakamatsu. A Brewery Where Tradition and Innovation Coexist 🍶✨
Nanokamachi, Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture. Tsurunoe Sake Brewery, founded in the 6th year of the Kansei era (1794), is located in the castle town of Aizu, a place close to Tsurugajo Castle that still retains samurai residences and historic streetscapes. As a prestigious brewery that once served as a purveyor to the Aizu Domain, it has continued to brew sake in this area for over 230 years.
A symbol of Tsurunoe Sake Brewery's sake brewing is their dedication to pressing all their sake using the traditional funeshibori (vat pressing) method. They continue to preserve the hand-crafted technique of carefully stacking the moromi (sake mash) in traditional vats and pressing it slowly.
Among their methods, fukurotsuri (bag hanging) is an especially luxurious process. The moromi is placed into individual bags and hung, allowing them to collect only the drops that fall naturally by gravity. This produces a delicate, full-bodied flavor that can never be achieved by machines.
This accumulation of hand-crafted work has led to solid achievements, such as winning gold prizes not only in Japan, but also at the U.S. National Sake Appraisal 🏅. Inside the brewery, old brewing methods and tools are still carefully preserved alongside active equipment to pass down their history. During renovations about 10 years ago, state-of-the-art equipment such as refrigerated tanks were also introduced, allowing tradition and modern technology to quietly coexist.
🍶 Aizu Chujo "Aizu Chujo" is Tsurunoe's signature brand, born in Showa 52 (1977). "Aizu Chujo Daiginjo Fukunoka" uses Fukushima Prefecture's original sake brewing rice, "Fukunoka." It was awarded a gold prize at the Reiwa 7 (2025) Annual Japan Sake Awards. It is a bottle that brings to fruition the single-minded desire to "win a gold prize using Fukushima rice."
🍶 Yuri "Yuri" is a series born from the desire to "deliver the appeal of Japanese sake to underserved audiences." They carefully select rice that pairs well with soft water, resulting in a gentle and soft mouthfeel. The sophisticated design, featuring gold lettering on a pale blue bottle, is also striking. When served chilled, it reveals a more refreshing character.
Carrying the weight of 230 years of history, Tsurunoe Sake Brewery continues to take on new challenges. We invite you to pick up a glass and taste it for yourself 🍶.
🏘️: Tsurunoe Sake Brewery @tsurunoe.1794
📍: 2-46 Nanokamachi, Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture
"Great rice, great water, great people. Fukushima sake 🍶"
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