Koyanagi Sake Brewery Showa West Storehouse

A 34-metre storehouse at the centre of the yard

Koyanagi Sake Brewery Showa West Storehouse (小柳酒造昭和西蔵, Koyanagi Shuzō Shōwa Nishigura) is a two-storey timber brewing storehouse of 1928 at 903-1 Ogicho, Ogi City, Saga Prefecture, listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 14 February 2002.

It stands west of the main house, across the watercourse, near the centre of the production yard. The building runs 34 metres along the ridge and 13 metres across, with a footprint of 431 square metres. That makes it the largest of the thirteen listed structures here, more than twice the 205 square metres of the main house that comes second.

The roof is Sangawara-buki pantile on a north-south ridge, Yosemune-zukuri hipped, with the north and south gable ends finished in a half-hipped form. A tall brick base carries the walls, which above it are boarded in the sasarago weatherboard manner.

Brick below, boards above, tile on top

The elevation of Koyanagi Sake Brewery Showa West Storehouse divides into three bands. Brick at the ground, timber weatherboard above it, tile at the roof. The material changes as the wall rises.

Building the base high in brick was a practical decision. A storehouse is a wet place, and the floor edge never really dries. Bring timber boards down close to the ground and rot starts there. Brick tolerates water, so replacing the lower zone with brick buys years for the timber above. The same reasoning is repeated at the Showa East Storehouse and the koji room on this site.

Sasarago weatherboarding fixes horizontal boards with slim vertical battens notched in steps to match the thickness of each board. The commoner oshibuchi method simply presses the boards with a plain square batten. Notching takes more work, but it leaves less of a gap between board and batten.

The roof ends are worth noting. Although the roof is hipped, the north and south gable faces are cut off half way, half-hipped. A full hip would slope on all four sides; standing the upper part of the gable vertical instead makes room there for openings and ventilation. On a building 34 metres long, that treatment closes both ends firmly.

Listed as the core of the production yard

The listing criterion is contribution to the historic landscape of the nation, and the registration number is 41-0029. The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes Koyanagi Sake Brewery Showa West Storehouse as the core of the brewing facilities. Mashing and maturing sat at the centre of the process, and the assessment points out that they also sat at the centre of the site, in the largest building on it.

Construction was in 1928, part of the improvement scheme begun in 1926. The Showa East Storehouse, kettle room, bottling house, koji room, Muromae and pump house were all completed the same year. A business running since the late Edo period replaced its entire plant over two seasons.

Later care is on record too. According to Ogi City, the building was repaired to restore its appearance of around 1965, and the ground around it was laid out as a green space. Since 2020 part of the storehouse has operated as the Ogi Distillery. The idea behind the registration system, keeping buildings by continuing to use them, has taken the form of conversion here.

What to look at is the long wall. From a spot where the full 34 metres can be taken in, the three horizontal bands of brick, board and tile run away from you in parallel. Walk to either end and the half-hipped gable face comes into view.

Visiting

Koyanagi Sake Brewery Showa West Storehouse is the listed building on this site that visitors can get closest to inside. Part of it operates as the Ogi Distillery, open from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with irregular closing days and no admission charge. Walking through on your own needs no prior arrangement.

Guided tours of the storehouse, a yokan-making session at 1,000 yen and a nori-pressing session at 2,000 yen must be booked in advance; both sessions together cost 2,500 yen. Because the closing days are not fixed, telephone 0952-60-2095 before travelling.

The exterior is seen from the yard side. A 34-metre wall stops fitting into view as you approach, so step back to take it in. No photography policy has been published, so check at the distillery reception. Directions and parking are set out on the Koyanagi Sake Brewery page. Hours and prices here were checked on 14 September 2026.