A Working Soy Sauce Brewery of 1904
The Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store (福岡醤油店, Fukuoka Shōyuten) is a soy sauce brewery building put up in 1904 at Shimagahara, Iga City, Mie Prefecture, and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property (structure) on April 21, 1998 (Agency for Cultural Affairs).
The Agency for Cultural Affairs records a single-storey timber building with a tiled roof and a building area of 204 square metres, including a koji room and a boiler room; registration number 24-0015. Fukuoka Shoyuten Co., Ltd. still brews soy sauce in it.
A Soy Sauce House in Shimagahara
According to the company, the business was founded in August 1895 by 福岡長太. Iga City records that the brewery building went up in 1904, was extended the following year, and gained its boiler room in 1921.
In 1960 the business passed to 川向友宏, who in 1965 registered a newly developed soy sauce under the name Hasamezu. The company says the name comes from an old word for soy sauce, meaning something "you cannot pick up with chopsticks", that he heard from an elder in Kyoto.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs states that the area suffered a major flood in 1953 but this building escaped. The company's own history, however, says a debris flow that August half-wrecked the brewery and left its mark on the giraffe press.
Why It Was Registered
The Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store was registered as a structure contributing to the historic landscape of the country. The Agency for Cultural Affairs singles out the "giraffe press" installed inside for squeezing soy sauce, probably the only one of its kind still in use.
What to Look For
The giraffe press takes its name from its long beam, which rises like a giraffe's neck; Iga City gives its length as 6 metres. The company explains that the beam is zelkova and that the traditional method deliberately presses out less liquid than a machine would.
About 20 Yoshino cedar vats, in use since the brewery was founded, hold the moromi mash as it matures for 2 to 4 years (Fukuoka Shoyuten). The Mie Prefecture Tourism Federation describes the press and the great cedar vats, used for more than a century, crowded together inside.
Visiting
According to the company, brewery tours are offered all year. Free tours run during business hours (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and must be booked by phone in advance (0595-59-3121); paid plans with hands-on activities are also sold through booking sites.
The address is 1330 Shimagahara, Iga City. It is about 25 minutes on foot from Shimagahara Station on the JR Kansai Line, or 3 minutes from the Shogatsudo-higashi stop of Mie Kotsu buses. By car it is about 15 minutes from the Ouchi interchange of the Meihan National Highway, with parking for 6 cars in front (Fukuoka Shoyuten).
Q&A
- When was the Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store built?
- In 1904; it was extended the next year and gained a boiler room in 1921 (Agency for Cultural Affairs; Iga City).
- What is the giraffe press?
- A press for squeezing soy sauce mash, named for its 6-metre beam that looks like a giraffe's neck (Iga City; Fukuoka Shoyuten).
- Can I tour the Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store?
- Yes, all year; free tours must be booked by phone in advance (0595-59-3121) (Fukuoka Shoyuten).
- What is Hasamezu?
- The company's soy sauce brand, registered as a trademark in 1965 and named after an old word for soy sauce (Fukuoka Shoyuten).
- When was the Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store registered?
- On April 21, 1998.
Basic Information
| Name | Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store (福岡醤油店) |
|---|---|
| Location | 1330 Shimagahara, Iga City, Mie Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 1998/04/21 (Heisei 10) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Single-storey timber building, tiled roof, building area 204 square metres |
| Owner | Fukuoka Shoyuten Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Brewery tours available (free tours by phone reservation) |
References
- Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store (Database of National Cultural Properties, Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00000536
- Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store (Iga City Digital Museum, Japanese)
- https://adeac.jp/iga-city/catalog/mp404490-100040
- Fukuoka Soy Sauce Store (Kanko Mie, Japanese)
- https://www.kankomie.or.jp/spot/4722
- About Hasamezu (Fukuoka Shoyuten, Japanese)
- https://www.hasamezu.com/pages/19/
- Tours and access (Fukuoka Shoyuten, Japanese)
- https://www.hasamezu.com/pages/115/
- Company profile (Fukuoka Shoyuten, Japanese)
- https://www.hasamezu.com/pages/3/
Last verified: 2026.10.14