The Storehouse Without a Ridge Tablet
Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse (両関酒造３号蔵, Ryōzeki Shuzō Sangō-gura) is a two-story earthen storehouse in the Dozo-zukuri manner at Ryozeki Sake Brewery in Maemori, Yuzawa City, Akita Prefecture, dated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs to the early Taisho period (1912 to 1925) and listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on December 20, 1996, under registration number 05-0004.
It has a building area of 224 square meters, and like the other Ryozeki storehouses its roof and walls are finished in Shikkui lime plaster.
Why Its Date Is Uncertain
Of the four storehouses at Ryozeki, the No. 3 Storehouse is the only one for which no Munafuda, or ridge tablet, has been found. Without that record the year of construction is unknown, and the Agency estimates from its structure and form that it went up at roughly the same time as the No. 2 Storehouse.
The sources do not quite agree. The national database gives "early Taisho," while Yuzawa City gives "late Meiji to Taisho." Since the No. 2 Storehouse it is compared with dates from 1908, there is a gap of a few years between "about the same time as No. 2" and "early Taisho." This article follows the Agency and gives the date as early Taisho.
A Second Roof Against the Snow
In its note on the Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse, the Agency explains that all the brewery's storehouses sit under large outer roofs, because a covering roof helps keep the buildings warm and makes snow clearance easier. Yuzawa gets heavy snow. A second roof over an earthen storehouse keeps the snow off the plastered roof below and helps hold a steady temperature inside.
The same note calls this outer roof Yōgoya, a Western-style truss. Yuzawa City, however, says every Ryozeki storehouse is framed in Wagoya, and the Agency says the same in its note on the No. 4 Storehouse. The two statements fit together if the outer roof is a truss while the storehouses themselves keep a Japanese frame, but no source spells this out.
Like the other four buildings, it became a Registered Tangible Cultural Property in 1996 as a building that contributes to the historic landscape of the nation.
What to Look for in the No. 3 Storehouse
If you get inside, compare it with the No. 2 Storehouse. The shared features of structure and form that led the Agency to its estimated date only make sense side by side.
Look up, too, at how the outer roof sits over the plastered roof of the earthen storehouse. Seeing the two layers together is the simplest way to judge which part the Western-truss description and the wagoya description each refer to.
Visiting the Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse
There is no public access to the interior. The brewery tour is the only chance to go in, and it was not being offered as of September 28, 2026.
A resumed tour may not go deep enough to compare No. 3 with No. 2, so if that is what you want to see, say so when you contact the brewery. No photography rules have been published. Booking conditions and transport are covered on the Ryozeki Sake Brewery page.
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Q&A
- When was the Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse built?
- The exact year is unknown because no ridge tablet survives. The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the early Taisho period (1912 to 1925); Yuzawa City says late Meiji to Taisho.
- Why is the Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse the only one without a known date?
- It is the only storehouse at the brewery for which no ridge tablet has been found. The Agency estimates from its structure that it is about the same age as the No. 2 Storehouse.
- Why does the Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse have a large outer roof?
- According to the Agency, covering the storehouses with a large roof helps keep them warm and makes it easier to clear snow.
- Is the roof of the Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse a Western truss or a Japanese frame?
- The Agency's note on No. 3 calls the outer roof a Western-style truss, while Yuzawa City and the Agency's note on No. 4 describe the storehouses as wagoya. The likely reading is that the outer roof and the storehouse itself differ, but no source states this.
- Can I see inside the Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse?
- It is not open to the public. Brewery tours were suspended as of September 28, 2026.
Basic Information
| Name | Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse (両関酒造３号蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 4-3-18 Maemori, Yuzawa City, Akita Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building), registration no. 05-0004 |
| Year Designated | Registered December 20, 1996 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Dozo-zukuri, 2 stories, plastered roof, building area 224 square meters |
| Owner | Ryozeki Shuzo Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Interior closed (brewery tours currently suspended) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000014
- Cultural Heritage Online: Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 3 Storehouse
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/112894
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Ryozeki Sake Brewery No. 4 Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00000015
- Yuzawa City: Ryozeki Sake Brewery Main Building and Four Other Buildings (Japanese)
- https://www.city-yuzawa.jp/site/bunkazai/2212.html
- Ryozeki Shuzo Co., Ltd. official website (Japanese)
- https://www.ryozeki.co.jp/
Last verified: 2026.09.27
