About Watanabe Sake Brewery

Located in the heart of Hida.

Hourai Sake Brewery is situated in Hida-Furukawa, a town nestled in a rich and inspiring natural setting.

There are now over 1,500 sakagura (sake breweries) around the world.

We achieved the No. 1 ranking in 2021, and we have maintained a five-star rating for the last four years.

Only the top 10 ranking breweries can receive a five-star rating.

Sake Ranking
Owarai Tank

Owarai Tank

We play a famous Japanese comedy CD for the fermentation tank continuously! Laughing makes sake happy, and sake makes us HAPPY! Once a year, we ask real comedians to perform a comedy to the tanks!

Arigato Tank

We believe positive words make Sake  great! So we ask visitors to write anything positive on the tank!

Vegan Kosher logo

Vegan and Kosher

We do not use any animal products to make our sake. We are registered as both VEGAN and KOSHER.

History of Watanabe Sake Brewery

Established in 1850 by fifth generation Kyuemon, Watanabe Sake Brewery is located in Furukawa Town, Hida City, which is situated at the northernmost tip of Gifu Prefecture. The town is positioned in the Furukawa Basin, surrounded by mountains such as the Northern Alps with elevations surpassing 3,000 meters and the Hida mountain range.

“There’s a remarkable sense of elegance and antiquity in the streets of Hida Furukawa. Because it has not been commercialized for tourism, there’s a genuine demeanor, expression, and even a feeling of character,” remarked the author Ryotaro Shiba in “Traveling the Highways”. Ichino-town, lined with old lattice-fronted merchant houses, has a calm atmosphere, and along the Seto River, with its continuous white-walled and black-waisted storehouses, a still moist ambiance lingers.

As you pass through the indigo-colored noren (curtain), you enter the Watanabe Sake Brewery. Inside, there’s a profound sense of serene time and dense atmosphere, unique to a long-established brewery that has been brewing fine sake for many years.

Explore Gifu’s Hida Region

The Hida region covers the northern half of Gifu Prefecture and is known for its abundant nature and traditional culture. It’s home to some of Gifu’s—and indeed central Japan’s—most popular destinations including Takayama, Shirakawa-go and Hida Furukawa.