A Taisho Storehouse Brewery in Yoshida
The Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery (旭醤油醸造場, Asahi shōyu jōzōjō) is an early-Taisho-period storehouse-style brewery in Higashikoji, Yoshida-cho, Uwajima City, Ehime Prefecture, and was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on February 14, 2002. It is owned by Asahi Gomei Kaisha, a soy sauce maker founded in 1882.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records it as a single-storey building in dozo-zukuri storehouse construction, with a tiled roof and a building area of 113 square metres. It dates from the early Taisho period (1912 to 1925), and its registration number is 38-0026.
Why It Was Registered
The Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery was registered as a building that contributes to the historic landscape of the country. According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, it stands on a street corner in the centre of Yoshida and preserves the streetscape of the Taisho era.
Its thick clay-walled body, gabled with the entrance on the long side, rises from a base of granite left with a rough, bulging kobudashi finish. The front has wide windows fitted with lattice and a neat little canopy carried on iron brackets. In the shop area, a tiled sink once used for selling soy sauce by measure still survives (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
What to Look For
Standing on a corner, the Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery can be seen from two streets. Start with the rough-faced granite of the base, then look up the heavy clay walls above it. On the front, the latticed horizontal windows and the small canopy on slender iron brackets lighten an otherwise solid storehouse.
According to the Shikoku Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry, the torrential rains of July 7, 2018 flooded the Asahi Gomei Kaisha brewery area to the height of an adult's chest, lifting and breaking the production barrels. The maker carried on after the disaster.
Visiting the Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery
The Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery is a working brewer's building, and its exterior can be seen from the street. The address is 112 Higashikoji-ko, Yoshida-cho, Uwajima City (Agency for Cultural Affairs). No official information on viewing the interior or on photography was found. The Shikoku bureau's document lists the company's phone number as 0895-52-0242.
Q&A
- When was the Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery built?
- In the early Taisho period (1912 to 1925), according to the national record.
- When was the Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery registered as a cultural property?
- It became a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on February 14, 2002.
- What does the Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery look like?
- A clay-walled storehouse on a rough granite base, with latticed horizontal windows and a small canopy on iron brackets; a tiled sink for selling by measure survives inside.
- Can you visit the Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery?
- The exterior can be seen from the street; there is no official information on interior viewing.
- Was the Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery damaged in the 2018 floods?
- Yes. On July 7, 2018 the brewery area flooded to chest height and production barrels were broken.
Basic Information
| Name | Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery (旭醤油醸造場) |
|---|---|
| Location | 112 Higashikoji-ko, Yoshida-cho, Uwajima City, Ehime Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2002/2/14 (Heisei 14) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Storehouse construction, single storey, tiled roof, building area 113 square metres |
| Owner | Asahi Gomei Kaisha |
| Public Access | Exterior viewable from the street (no information on interior viewing) |
References
- Asahi Soy Sauce Brewery (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00002699
- Recovery case study: Asahi Gomei Kaisha (Shikoku Bureau of Economy, Trade and Industry)
- https://www.shikoku.meti.go.jp/03_sesakudocs/0404_chusho/fukko_jirei/jirei_19.pdf
Last verified: 2026.10.05