What Is the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse?
The Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse (旧東屋酒造店酒蔵, Kyū Azumaya Shuzōten Sakagura) is a late-Edo Dozo-zukuri brewing storehouse in Motomachi, Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 29, 2019.
It stands behind the shop-house of the Azumaya family. The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse to the end of the Edo period (1830 to 1868) and notes repairs around 1953. It is single-storey with a partial upper floor, roofed in metal sheeting, and at 363 square meters it is the largest of the three registered buildings on the lot.
No document gives an exact building date. Cinema de Aeru, which uses the storehouse today, suggests it went up around the time the family began brewing in 1824 and puts it at about 1830.
Why the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse Was Registered
The Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse is registration number 03-108, listed for its contribution to the historic landscape. The agency values it as a building that keeps the traditional arrangement of a sake brewery.
It measures 13.5 by 7.5 Ken, about 24.5 meters along the ridge (Ketayuki) and 13.6 meters across (Harima). Heavy beams and purlins of large section span the interior so that intermediate posts could be left out. The open floor once held brewing equipment; today it holds the audience at screenings.
What to Look for at the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse
Outside, the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse has a Kirizuma-zukuri gabled roof built as an Okiyane, a separate roof frame set on top of the earthen storehouse body. The walls were left at the intermediate coat of plaster rather than given a finishing coat.
There are two doorways, one toward the south end of the west wall and one toward the west end of the south wall. The west wall faces the shop-house, and the two openings sit close together on either side of the southwest corner.
Once inside, look up. The roof load is carried on beams and purlins rather than posts, so from the floor you can see the full 24.5-meter length of the hall without interruption.
Visiting the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse
Since December 2016 the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse has been the venue of Cinema de Aeru, a volunteer film group. The interior is open on screening and event days; in 2026 the group has held roughly one program a month, mostly at weekends. Check the group's website and Facebook page for dates.
The entrance faces a small forecourt the group calls the Nokishita Garden, where a little market sometimes sets up alongside screenings. On other days the storehouse sits on private property and should not be entered.
Ask the organizers about photography inside at each event. The Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse is about a 12-minute walk from Miyako Station.
Q&A
- When was the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the end of the Edo period (1830 to 1868), with repairs around 1953. Cinema de Aeru estimates the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse was built around 1830.
- Is the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse a Registered Tangible Cultural Property, and since when?
- Yes. The Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on March 29, 2019, under number 03-108.
- Can visitors go inside the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse?
- Yes, on Cinema de Aeru screening and event days. In 2026 the group has been running roughly one weekend program a month, announced on its website and Facebook page.
- What is special about the structure of the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse?
- It is a single-storey earthen storehouse with a partial upper floor and a separately framed gabled roof. At about 24.5 by 13.6 meters, its interior is spanned by heavy beams and purlins with no intermediate posts.
- Where is the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse?
- It stands on the Former Azumaya Sake Brewery lot in Motomachi, Miyako, directly behind the shop-house on the street. The Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse is about 12 minutes on foot from Miyako Station.
Basic Information
| Name | Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | Motomachi 15 and others, Miyako City, Iwate Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | 2019 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Single-storey earthen storehouse with partial upper floor, building area 363 m² |
| Owner | Private individual |
| Public Access | Interior open on Cinema de Aeru screening and event days |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs database: Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00012675
- Cultural Heritage Online: Former Azumaya Sake Brewery Sake Storehouse
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/457589
- Miyako City: National and prefectural cultural properties list (PDF, Japanese)
- https://www.city.miyako.iwate.jp/material/files/group/39/2kunikennitirann.pdf
- Cinema de Aeru: About Azumaya (Japanese)
- https://www.cinemadeaeru.com/about-azumaya
- Cinema de Aeru: Activities 2026 (Japanese)
- https://www.cinemadeaeru.com/activities-2026
- Cinema de Aeru on RESERVA: About (Japanese)
- https://reserva.be/cinemadeaeru/about
Last verified: 2026.10.03
