An L-Shaped Building at the End of the Line
Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant (梅ヶ枝酒造瓶詰所, Umegae Shuzō binzumejo) is a late Edo-period two-story Dozo-zukuri earthen-walled building south of the main house in the Umegae Sake Brewery compound in Jomacho, Sasebo City, Nagasaki Prefecture; altered in the late Meiji period, it became a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on February 14, 2002. Its ground floor now serves as the shipping workroom.
The plan joins two quite different wings in an L. One is a one-story wing running north to south, 9.4 meters by 6.4 meters; the other is a full two-story wing running east to west, 11.5 meters by 5.6 meters. Both have gabled Kirizuma-zukuri roofs, and both ground floors are Doma, packed-earth floors.
The two wings come to about 60 square meters and 64 square meters, which together match the registered building area of 125 square meters. Two wings of different heights meeting at a corner is a form found nowhere else among the seven registered buildings.
Where Production Meets Shipping
The Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant stands just south of the lean-to on the main house's south side. According to the Agency for Cultural Affairs, that lean-to was once the kamaba, where rice was steamed. Raw material was processed on one side and finished product sent out on the other, with the main house between them.
To the west run the former muro and the former brewing storehouse. The two-story wing closes the eastern end of that row, lifting the roofline again after the low muro. Read from west to east, the southern range of buildings follows sake from fermentation to dispatch and ends here.
The brewery says its sake and shōchū are bottled one at a time, and that labels are mostly applied by machine but sometimes by hand. Registered for its contribution to the historic landscape, the building earns its place by still doing the final job in the chain inside late Edo earthen walls.
What to Look For at the Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant
Look at the inside corner of the L. Where the low north-south gable meets the tall east-west gable, the roofs overlap at different heights, and you can see that the two wings were put together as separate units.
The two-story wing is the tallest thing along the southern edge of the Umegae site. From the muro end of the passage, the roofline dips over the one-story muro and climbs again at the Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant, and that rise and fall is part of what gives the southern frontage its character.
Visiting the Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant
The Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant is an active shipping area, and its interior is not advertised as open. You can see it from the south side of the main house, but goods move in and out here, so keep clear of the work and follow your tour guide. Ask whether photography is allowed.
Directions and tour booking details are on the Umegae Sake Brewery page.
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Q&A
- What is the Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant?
- A late Edo two-story earthen-walled building altered in the late Meiji period, made of a one-story wing and a two-story wing joined in an L. Its ground floor is used for shipping. It was registered in 2002.
- How large is the Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant?
- The north-south wing is 9.4 meters by 6.4 meters and the east-west wing 11.5 meters by 5.6 meters, for a building area of 125 square meters.
- Where is the Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant on the site?
- South of the main house's south lean-to, the former rice-steaming area, with the former muro and brewing storehouse to the west.
- Is the Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant still in use?
- Yes. Its ground floor is currently the shipping workroom.
- Can I go inside the Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant?
- The interior is not advertised as open. View the exterior while following a tour guide.
Basic Information
| Name | Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant |
|---|---|
| Location | 317 Jomacho, Sasebo City, Nagasaki Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered February 14, 2002 (Heisei 14) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | North-south wing 9.4 meters by 6.4 meters; east-west wing 11.5 meters by 5.6 meters; building area 125 square meters |
| Owner | Umegae Sake Brewery Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Interior not advertised as open |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Umegae Sake Brewery Bottling Plant
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00002729
- Umegae Sake Brewery: Brewery Tours (Japanese)
- https://www.umegae-shuzo.com/kura/index.php
Last verified: 2026.09.19
