The Taisho Hall Beside the Older One
Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House is a single-storey timber hall of the Taisho era at Ueno in Katsuura City, Chiba Prefecture, entered on the national register as Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 18 April 2008.
It stands directly north of the south brewing house and shares its alignment, 29 metres by 16 metres with the ridge running north to south, under a gabled kirizuma roof of sangawara pantiles. The building area is 486 square metres.
The walls rise from a cut-stone footing and are built as shinkabe finished in white shikkui. Their lower band and the gable ends are clad in shitami-itabari weatherboarding held by slender battens, so the elevation divides into a pale upper field and a dark base.
A Truss Instead of a Traditional Frame
The roof is what separates this hall from its neighbour. Where the south brewing house uses a wagoya frame of stacked beams, Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House is carried on king post trusses, a European form that only entered Japanese building practice in the modern period.
A clear span of 16 metres is more than the stacked-beam method handles comfortably. Choosing a truss kept the floor free of posts, which suits both the work done here and the Taisho date on the record.
The listing criterion was contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that the hall, ranged alongside the south brewing house, forms a scene characteristic of the brewing trade.
Two Roofs in a Row
There are few angles from which this building is seen on its own. From the road it appears as the second of two gabled roofs, and that doubled ridge line is how the compound announces itself from a distance.
Where you can get close, look at the boarded base. Battened weatherboarding presses a thin vertical strip over each lap in the boards, a detail that earns its keep on the wet Boso coast by protecting the foot of the wall.
A little to the northeast stands the small shrine to Matsuo. A brewing deity housed behind the halls says a good deal about how this compound was used.
Conditions for Seeing It
The interior of Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House is closed, so the trusses cannot be seen. The company's website advertises no tour.
From inside the gate the hall shows as a roof line beyond its neighbour. For the pair of ridges together, shoot from the south side of the road across the stone wall.
Directions to the compound and the shop's opening hours are collected on the Yoshino Sake Brewery page. Keep to the area around the shop, and ask before photographing.
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Q&A
- What kind of roof frame does Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House use?
- King post trusses. Unlike the stacked-beam frame of the south brewing house, this imported form carries a clear span of 16 metres.
- When was Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House built?
- In the Taisho era, according to the Agency for Cultural Affairs database.
- How large is Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House?
- It is a single-storey hall of 29 metres by 16 metres, with a building area of 486 square metres.
- Can the interior of Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House be visited?
- No. The interior is closed. The exterior is visible from inside the gate and from the road as one of two ranged roofs.
- What heritage status does Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House hold?
- It is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property, entered on the register on 18 April 2008.
Basic Information
| Name | Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House |
|---|---|
| Location | 571 Koshigoe, Ueno, Katsuura City, Chiba Prefecture, and other locations |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2008/4/18 (Heisei 20) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber-framed, single storey, tile roof, building area 486 square metres |
| Owner | Yoshino Shuzo Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Interior not open; exterior only |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, National Cultural Properties Database: Yoshino Sake Brewery North Brewing House
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00007011
- Chiba Prefectural Board of Education: Yoshino Shuzo Tenpo ken Shuoku hoka
- https://www.pref.chiba.lg.jp/kyouiku/bunkazai/bunkazai/q111-057.html
- Yoshino Shuzo Co., Ltd., official site (Koshigoi)
- https://www.koshigoi.com
Last verified: 2026.09.17
