The Big Storehouse in the Middle
The Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse (鈴木酒造店中蔵及び袖蔵, Suzuki Shuzōten Nakagura oyobi Sodegura) in Nagano, Daisen City, Akita Prefecture, is a brewing storehouse of the early Taisho period (1912 to 1918) at a working sake brewery, and became a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 3 April 2020. It combines the middle storehouse, a Dozo-zukuri building of 2 storeys with a single-storey part, and the side storehouse, a single-storey timber wing, under sheet-iron roofs, with a building area of 305 square metres. It was extended in 1935.
It sits between the front storehouse to the north and the brewing storehouse to the south, in the middle of the chain that runs south from the main house. The middle storehouse is a large earthen building 24 metres long; on its west side a broad lean-to, the Geya known here as the sodegura or side storehouse, juts out. A doorway links it east to the north storehouse, and the pressing room once stood between them. Within Suzuki Sake Brewery, this is where the storehouses meet.
Why It Was Registered
The Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse was registered as a building that contributes to the historic landscape.
What makes it telling is that changes in brewing are layered into the building. North of the side storehouse, a drying area, a testing room and an inspection room were added as methods changed and machinery came in. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that the history of the business can be glimpsed here.
The drying area, karashiba, is the brewers' term for where koji, freshly out of the Kojimuro, is spread out to dry. The testing and inspection rooms were for analysing and checking the sake, a sign of measurement joining hand work in the brewing house.
A 24-Metre Wall and Its Wing
From outside, the Suzuki Sake Brewery middle storehouse has two personalities. The earthen main block runs a long wall, and on its west side the timber side storehouse steps out under a lower roof: a heavy earthen body with a lighter wooden wing leaning against it.
The record notes an extension in 1935. Published sources do not say which part it was, but the Taisho building has clearly been added to, and seen that way it reads less as one big storehouse than as a workplace reshaped over time.
It is also the hinge of the compound, with the front storehouse to the north, the brewing storehouse to the south and the north storehouse to the east.
Visiting
The Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse is part of a working brewery and cannot be entered freely. The storehouses are shown on Suzuki Sake Brewery's paid, reservation-only tour, but the official description does not say which ones the route includes. Check with the guide about photography.
Tour times, fees and directions are on the Suzuki Sake Brewery page.
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Q&A
- What is the side storehouse in the Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse?
- It is a broad lean-to wing projecting from the west side of the middle storehouse, which the brewery calls the sodegura, or side storehouse.
- When was the Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse built?
- In the early Taisho period (1912 to 1918), with an extension in 1935. It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 3 April 2020.
- How big is the Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse?
- The middle storehouse is 24 metres long, and together with the side storehouse the building area is 305 square metres.
- Can I go inside the Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse?
- The brewery's paid tour, booked in advance, takes visitors into its storehouses; ask when booking whether this one is included.
- Where is the Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse and how do I get there?
- It is inside the Suzuki Sake Brewery compound in Nagano, Daisen City, Akita Prefecture. It stands between the front storehouse and the brewing storehouse. Ugo-Nagano Station on the JR Tazawako Line is about a 10-minute walk away.
Basic Information
| Name | Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse (鈴木酒造店中蔵及び袖蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 9 Futsukamachi, Nagano, Daisen City, Akita Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2020/4/3 (Reiwa 2) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Dozo-zukuri, 2 storeys with a single-storey part, and a single-storey timber wing; sheet-iron roof; building area 305 square metres |
| Owner | Suzuki Sake Brewery Partnership (合名会社鈴木酒造店) |
| Public Access | Working brewery; ask when booking the paid tour whether it is included |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Suzuki Sake Brewery Middle Storehouse and Side Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00013212
- Hideyoshi, Suzuki Sake Brewery: Brewery Tours
- https://www.hideyoshi.co.jp/tour/
- Daisen City: Nationally Designated and Registered Cultural Properties
- https://www.city.daisen.lg.jp/archive/contents-1884
Last verified: 2026.09.26
