Where the Rice Was Washed and Steamed
Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House (石川酒造釜場, Ishikawa Shuzō Kamaba) is a brewing building at a sake brewery in Sakuramachi, Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture, built in the late Meiji period (1898 to 1912) and registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property of Japan on March 29, 2013. Its registration number is 24-0139.
It is attached to the Great Brewhouse on the north and to the Pressing House on the west. The Steaming House is a single-storey timber building with a mezzanine in its southeast corner, under a gabled (Kirizuma-zukuri) pantiled roof. It measures 18.2 metres by 9.1 metres and covers 166 square metres.
The kamaba is where brewing rice is washed, soaked and then steamed over a large kettle in a wooden steamer. The steamed rice goes on to koji making and into the mash. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes the Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House as a large brewing building that handled washing, steaming and related steps.
Why It Was Registered
The Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. Beyond its size, what gives it value is how clearly the building still reflects the work it was built for.
The roof is framed in the traditional way (Wagoya) and left open, with no ceiling to hide the beams and posts. Boiling water and steaming rice fill a room with vapour and heat, and leaving the full height open lets it rise.
The way out is a raised ventilator, a koshi-yane, perched on the ridge: a second, smaller roof with openings in its sides. It also makes the Steaming House easy to pick out from the other buildings. Its position between the brewhouse to the north and the pressing house to the west shows the order of work in the layout itself.
What to Look For
The giveaway on the Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House is the ventilator on the ridge. A small roof sits on top of the main one, and the device for letting out steam has become the building's silhouette.
The mezzanine in the southeast corner is the other distinctive feature. Work buildings like this sometimes had a raised deck for storing gear or watching over the floor. The record does not say how it was used, but one corner of the tall single-storey hall is split into two levels.
Because the Great Brewhouse, Pressing House and Bottling House hem it in on three sides, you rarely see the whole building at once. From inside the grounds, look for the angle where the ventilator stands out against the black wall of the brewhouse behind it.
Visiting the Steaming House
The Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House is enclosed between the Great Brewhouse and the Pressing House and is barely visible from outside. The interior is not open.
Directions and contact details are collected on the Ishikawa Sake Brewery page.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Mie
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House (Kamaba)
- [ Ise Grand Shrine & Shima Bay Cruise Tours ]
Q&A
- What happened in the Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House?
- Brewing rice was washed, soaked and steamed there before going on to koji making and the mash.
- When was the Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House built?
- It dates from the late Meiji period, between 1898 and 1912.
- What is the small roof on top of the Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House?
- A raised ventilator on the ridge that let steam and heat escape while rice was being steamed.
- How big is the Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House?
- It is a single-storey timber building 18.2 metres by 9.1 metres, with 166 square metres of floor and a mezzanine in the southeast corner.
- Can I visit the Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House?
- The interior is closed, and because it stands in the middle of the grounds it can hardly be seen from outside.
Basic Information
| Name | Ishikawa Sake Brewery Steaming House (Kamaba) |
|---|---|
| Location | 128 Minamigakiuchi, Sakuramachi, Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture (and adjoining lots) |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2013/3/29 (Heisei 25) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, single storey with a partial upper floor (2 storeys in part), tiled roof, building area 166 square metres (18.2 metres by 9.1 metres) |
| Owner | Ishikawa Shuzo Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Not open to the public (it is enclosed between the Great Brewhouse and Pressing House and barely visible from outside) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: 石川酒造釜場
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00009487
- Yokkaichi City: Ishikawa Sake Brewery Main House, Great Brewhouse, Artesian Well and 15 structures in all
- https://www.city.yokkaichi.lg.jp/www/contents/1001000002649/index.html
Last verified: 2026.09.25
