The Heart of the Brewery
The Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Brewing Storehouses (大森醤油醸造所仕込蔵) are the core brewing buildings of a soy sauce brewery at Obe, Tonosho Town, Shozu District, Kagawa Prefecture, a pair of single-storey timber storehouses of the early Meiji period, registered together as one Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on March 2, 2004 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records single-storey timber construction with a slate roof and a building area of 148 square metres, registration number 37-0206.
Soy Sauce on Shodoshima
According to the Shodoshima Soy Sauce Cooperative, soy sauce making on the island is traditionally said to date from the 1590s, and the island, long a major salt producer, turned to soy sauce when salt fell into oversupply in the late Edo period. The Japan Tourism Agency notes that up to 400 breweries operated on Shodoshima around the turn of the 20th century, of which about 20 still work today.
The Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Brewing Storehouses are among the buildings of a brewery at Obe in the north of Shodoshima, registered together with its koji house and its pressing shed and work area (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Value as a Registered Cultural Property
The Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Brewing Storehouses were registered as structures contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs calls them the core of the brewery.
What to Look For
The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes two parallel gabled buildings on a north-south axis east of the pressing shed, each 5.5 bays long, the western one 4 bays deep and the eastern one 3, now roofed in slate in place of the original tiles.
Inside, the Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Brewing Storehouses have a central post carrying a two-tier beam frame; outside, vertical boarding below and horizontal slatted windows above (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
Visiting
No public access information has been confirmed for the brewery; please view it only from the road without entering the premises. The address is 3272-1 Obe, Tonosho Town.
See the group page Omori Soy Sauce Brewery for all three buildings.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Kagawa
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Brewing Storehouses
- [ Naoshima Art Island & Kotohiragu Shrine Visit ]
Q&A
- When were they built?
- In the early Meiji period (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- What are they?
- Two parallel gabled brewing storehouses, the core of the brewery (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- How are they framed inside?
- With a central post carrying a two-tier beam frame (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- What do they look like outside?
- Vertical boarding below and horizontal slatted windows above (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
- When were the Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Brewing Storehouses registered?
- On March 2, 2004.
Basic Information
| Name | Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Brewing Storehouses (大森醤油醸造所仕込蔵) |
|---|---|
| Location | 3272-1 Obe, Tonosho Town, Shozu District, Kagawa Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2004/03/02 (Heisei 16) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, single storey, slate roof, building area 148 square metres |
| Owner | Not listed in the national database |
| Public Access | No public access information |
References
- Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Brewing Storehouses (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00004041
- Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Koji House (Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00004039
- Omori Soy Sauce Brewery Pressing Shed and Work Area (Database of National Cultural Properties)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00004040
- History of Shodoshima Soy Sauce (Shodoshima Soy Sauce Cooperative)
- https://shima-shoyu.com/history/
- Shodoshima Soy Sauce: An Aromatic Tradition (Japan Tourism Agency Multilingual Database)
- https://www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db/en/R2-01894.html
Last verified: 2026.10.11
