About the Higashikadowaki Family Residence Former Koji Room
The Higashikadowaki Family Residence Former Koji Room (東門脇家住宅旧麹室, Higashi-Kadowaki-ke Jūtaku Kyū Kōjishitsu) is a single-story workshop built in 1898 for making koji for sake brewing, in Tokorogo, Daisen Town, Tottori Prefecture, and was entered on Japan's register of Registered Tangible Cultural Properties on November 8, 2004. It is a timber building under a Kirizuma-zukuri gabled roof of Sangawara-buki pan tiles, with a building area of 77 square meters.
The koji room stands at the back of the estate, on the north side, beside the former sake brewery built the same year. The Agency for Cultural Affairs identifies both as facilities of the brewing business the Higashikadowaki family ran from the Meiji period. Although it has only one story, the koji room covers more ground than the brewery, which has a building area of 72 square meters.
What a Koji Room Does
A Kojimuro is a room for growing koji: steamed rice inoculated with koji mold. The mold's enzymes turn the rice starch into sugar that yeast can ferment, so koji comes at the very start of sake making. Because it needs close control of temperature and humidity, breweries usually gave it a dedicated room.
That the Higashikadowaki Former Koji Room was built in the same year as the brewery suggests the family handled everything from koji making to fermentation on its own grounds. Published sources say nothing about the building's interior.
Boards Below, Plaster Above, and Eaves on Two Sides
The Higashikadowaki Former Koji Room measures 4.5 by 3 ken, with Geya lean-to eaves on its south and east sides; the one on the south is especially wide. Its walls are boards and board doors below, Shikkui lime plaster above.
Where the brewery is a two-story clay-walled storehouse, the koji room is a plain timber shed, its exterior simply divided between boards and plaster. Both buildings have a wide eave on the south side, which suggests a run of sheltered space where work at the back of the estate could carry on in the rain.
Why the Former Koji Room Was Registered
The Higashikadowaki Family Residence Former Koji Room was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes that, plain as it is, it preserves part of the family's former livelihood.
The koji room survives as a pair with the brewery built the same year. Together, the Higashikadowaki koji room and brewery show how a small brewing operation run by a rural family was put together.
Seeing the Higashikadowaki Former Koji Room
The Higashikadowaki Former Koji Room sits at the back of the lot next to the brewery and can hardly be seen from the road. The estate is a private home that is not open to the public, and the building is closed.
No official guidance on photography could be found as of September 2026. The koji room is less a building to go and look at than a reminder that sake was once made behind these walls.
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Q&A
- What was the Higashikadowaki Family Residence Former Koji Room used for?
- It was part of the sake brewing business the family ran from the Meiji period, and, as its name says, it was where koji for brewing was made.
- When was the Higashikadowaki Former Koji Room built?
- In 1898 (Meiji 31), the same year as the former sake brewery.
- How big is the Higashikadowaki Former Koji Room?
- It is a single-story timber building of 4.5 by 3 ken with a building area of 77 square meters, larger than the brewery at 72 square meters.
- What does the Higashikadowaki Family Residence Former Koji Room look like?
- It has lean-to eaves on the south and east, the southern one wide, and plain walls of boards below and lime plaster above.
- Can I visit the Higashikadowaki Former Koji Room?
- No. It stands at the back of a private property that is not open to the public.
Basic Information
| Name | Higashikadowaki Family Residence Former Koji Room (東門脇家住宅旧麹室) |
|---|---|
| Location | 425 Tokorogo, Daisen-cho, Saihaku-gun, Tottori Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | 2004 (registered) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Building area 77 m²; 3 ken deep (timber, 1 story) |
| Owner | Not disclosed |
| Public Access | Not open (at the back of the lot, barely visible from the road) |
References
- Database of National Cultural Properties (Agency for Cultural Affairs): Higashikadowaki Family Residence Former Koji Room
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00004402
- Cultural Heritage Online: Higashikadowaki Family Residence Former Koji Room
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/169712
- Daisen Town: Higashikadowaki Family Residence (Japanese)
- https://www.daisen.jp/10/33/1/s148/p136/
Last verified: 2026.09.29
