The Rice-Washing Shed of Imazato Sake Brewery
The Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area (今里酒造洗い場, Imazato Shuzō Araiba) is an early Shōwa-period single-storey timber brewery building in Shukugō, Hasami Town, Nagasaki Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 2 March 2006.
It stands north of the Honkura and the Nakagura with its ridge running east to west. The building is 11 Ken (about 20 metres) long and 4 ken (about 7.3 metres) wide, a single storey under a gable roof (Kirizuma-zukuri), with a building area of 266 square metres. The roof is sheet iron, and of the six registered buildings at Imazato Sake Brewery it is the only one not roofed in tile.
The name means "washing place", and refers to washing the rice before it is steamed. The brewery's own account of its work lists rice washing, steaming, koji making and mashing as stages where the brewers have to adjust to the condition of each year's rice.
Built onto the Older Brewhouses, with a Testing Room
The Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area is not a free-standing shed. From its south side a lean-to roof, a Geya, reaches across to the north walls of the Honkura and the Nakagura, so the three buildings read as one connected block.
At the west end a testing room projects from the building. The Agency for Cultural Affairs records the room but says nothing about the work done in it. What the record does establish is the plan itself: a rice-washing shed with a room for testing built into it.
A King Post Truss and a Smoke Vent
According to the Agency, the roof of the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area is carried on a King post truss, and Nagasaki Prefecture's database likewise calls it a Western-style king post frame. A central post hangs from the ridge and holds up the tie beam below, and diagonal members complete a rigid triangle. That is a different principle from Wagoya, the Japanese frame in which stacked beams take the weight of the roof.
The brewhouses to the south are both wagoya. The Honkura sets doubled tie beams every 2 ken with sloping beams between them; the Nakagura alternates the two. Late Edo brewhouses and an early Shōwa shed, side by side, are framed in two different generations of carpentry.
On the ridge sits a smoke vent, a small raised roof that lets steam and smoke escape from the building below.
The Agency describes the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area as one of the buildings that record how the brewery grew. It was registered under number 42-0054 for contributing to the historic landscape.
Seeing the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area
The interior of the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area is not open, so the king post truss cannot normally be seen. The building lies north of the Honkura and the Nakagura, at the far end of the compound from the street, and whether it is visible from the old road has not been confirmed.
From outside, the signs to look for are the sheet-iron roof and the smoke vent on the ridge. The grounds open once a year for the brewery's open house, but how close visitors can get depends on the arrangements on the day. There is no official guidance on photography, so ask staff first.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Nagasaki
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area
- [ Gunkanjima Island Landing & Glover Garden Tours ]
Q&A
- What was the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area used for?
- As the name says, it was the shed for washing the rice. A testing room projects from its west end, and a smoke vent on the ridge lets steam and smoke escape.
- What is special about the roof frame of the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area?
- It uses a Western-style king post truss. The late Edo Honkura and Nakagura to the south are framed in the Japanese wagoya manner with stacked beams.
- When was the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the early Shōwa period and gives no specific year.
- How is the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area connected to the Honkura and Nakagura?
- A lean-to roof extends from its south side to the north walls of the Honkura and the Nakagura.
- Can I go inside the Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area?
- The interior is not open to the public. The grounds open on the annual open-house days, but how close you can get depends on the arrangements on the day.
Basic Information
| Name | Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area (今里酒造洗い場) |
|---|---|
| Location | 596 Shukugo, Hasami-cho, Higashisonogi-gun, Nagasaki Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2006 |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber, single storey, sheet-iron roof, building area 266 square metres; 11 ken by 4 ken |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database (on the premises of Imazato Brewery Co., Ltd.) |
| Public Access | Interior closed to the public (grounds open on the annual open-house days) |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Cultural Properties Database: 今里酒造洗い場 (Imazato Sake Brewery Washing Area)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00005386
- Nagasaki Prefecture Cultural Properties Database: Imazato Shuzo
- https://www.pref.nagasaki.jp/bunkadb/index.php/view/419
- Hasami Town: Registered Tangible Cultural Properties
- https://www.town.hasami.lg.jp/kiji0031441/index.html
- Imazato Brewery: About
- https://rokujuyoshu.com/kodawari/
Last verified: 2026.10.06
