Ten metres built to carry steam away
Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney is the chimney of a sake brewery in Nisshincho, Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture, built in the late Meiji era between 1898 and 1912 and listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 2 November 2018. It is of brick and stands 10 metres high.
It rises near the centre of the rear of the compound and served the boiler house that once stood beside storehouse No. 3. Steaming rice throws off a great deal of vapour, and carrying it clear of the yard is what the height was for.
The base is 1.8 metres square and the shaft tapers towards the top. The brickwork is English bond English bond, and steel angle sections are banded round the outside as reinforcement.
Why it was listed
Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney was listed under the criterion for structures that contribute to the historic landscape of the country, with the registration number 07-0191.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls it a symbol of the brewing industry that grew in Aizuwakamatsu in the modern period. A chimney is not where sake is made, but from outside it is the clearest sign that a brewery had boilers and a steam plant.
Brick chimneys once stood over factories and bathhouses across Japan, and most have come down on seismic grounds. Examples still standing in place on the site of a working brewery are getting scarce. The steel banding is a later measure taken so that this one could stay.
English bond, and the steel bands
Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney is laid in English bond, courses of long faces alternating with courses of short ones. The brick wall on the same site uses stretcher bond instead. For a tall shaft, English bond supplies the strength that the form needs.
The banding is steel angle, L-shaped in section, wrapped around the shaft. Grey horizontals cross the red brick at intervals, so the reinforcement reads even from a distance.
The taper from a base 1.8 metres square is easiest to judge from directly below. The figure of 10 metres does not convey how quickly the shaft narrows; standing at the foot, your eye follows it.
Visiting
Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney stands towards the rear of the compound, so the base can be seen only from inside the grounds. The upper shaft shows above the roofs and can be picked out from nearby streets.
Photography within the grounds is unrestricted, but the area around the base is a working part of the brewery. Check with the guide how close you may go.
Opening times, closing days and directions for the compound as a whole are set out on the page for Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Fukushima
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney
- [ Aizu-Wakamatsu Castle & Ouchi-juku Village Tours ]
Q&A
- What was Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney for?
- Carrying away the steam from the boiler house used to steam rice, which once stood beside storehouse No. 3.
- How tall is Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney?
- 10 metres, on a base 1.8 metres square, tapering towards the top.
- What bond is Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney laid in?
- English bond, with courses of long faces alternating with courses of short ones, unlike the stretcher bond of the brick wall on the same site.
- Can Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney be seen from the street?
- The upper shaft shows above the roofs from nearby streets. The base can be seen only from inside the grounds.
- What are the steel bands around Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney?
- Steel angle sections, L-shaped in section, added round the outside as reinforcement. They read as grey horizontals across the brick.
Basic Information
| Name | Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney |
|---|---|
| Location | 159 Nisshincho, Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture, and others |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2018 (Heisei 30) |
| Quantity | 1 structure |
| Dimensions | Brick, height 10 metres, base 1.8 metres square |
| Owner | Suehiro Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Upper part visible from nearby streets; base only from within the compound |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database: Suehiro Sake Brewery Kaeigura Brick Chimney (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00012476
- Kaeigura tours (Suehiro Sake Brewery Co., Ltd.)
- https://sake-suehiro.co.jp/museum
- History of Suehiro (Suehiro Sake Brewery Co., Ltd.)
- https://sake-suehiro.co.jp/history
Last verified: 2026.09.17
