The Brewing Shed at the Back of the Lot
Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse (長沼合名会社仕込蔵, shikomigura) is a single-storey sake brewing storehouse from the Taishō era (1912 to 1925) in Tokamachi, Nagai City, Yamagata Prefecture, registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 18 April 2008. It is built in Dozo-zukuri style with a metal-clad roof and covers 142 square metres.
It occupies the northwest corner of the lot, north of the middle storehouse. A shikomigura is where the main fermentation happens: koji, steamed rice and water are added to the yeast starter to build the mash. It is the largest of the five Naganuma storehouses.
Built as a Pair with the Middle Storehouse
It was registered for its contribution to the historic landscape. The family built it for the core stage of brewing after they began making sake in 1916.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs states that the Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse follows the same specification as the middle storehouse, with a concrete floor and a trussed roof frame. Two storehouses that look traditional from outside, with modern floors and roofs, stand side by side at the back of the compound.
The Nagai tourism bureau gives its size as 4 ken wide and 10 ken long, which fits the agency's measurements of 19 metres by 7.6 metres.
Plaster, an Iron Door and a Trussed Roof
The gable roof, its ridge running north to south, is an oki-yane, a separate frame set on the earthen body, clad in metal sheet. The walls are finished in Shikkui lime plaster. An iron door is set in the south wall, and windows open on the east and north.
The floor is concrete, a surface that can take large vats and the water that brewing uses in quantity. The roof is carried on trusses that span the 7.6-metre width without posts, leaving a tall, open single-storey room suited to the work of fermentation.
Stand at the south end of the Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse and the composition is spare: a white plastered gable and a single dark iron door.
Seeing the Brewing Storehouse
The storehouse sits in the northwest corner of the lot and cannot be seen from the street. It is the working heart of an active brewery, and no public access to the interior is announced.
There is no published photography policy. Directions are on the Naganuma General Partnership Company group page. Information checked on 26 September 2026.
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Q&A
- Can I visit the Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse?
- It is in the northwest corner of the lot and cannot be seen from the street. It is a working part of the brewery, and no public access to the interior is announced.
- When was the Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse built?
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to the Taishō era (1912 to 1925). It was registered as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 18 April 2008.
- How big is the Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse?
- It measures 19 metres by 7.6 metres, a single storey with a footprint of 142 square metres, the largest of the Naganuma storehouses.
- How is the Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse related to the middle storehouse?
- The agency says it was built to the same specification, with a concrete floor and trussed roof frame. It stands just north of the middle storehouse.
- What does the Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse look like?
- A lime-plastered earthen storehouse under a separate gable roof, with an iron door on the south side and windows on the east and north.
Basic Information
| Name | Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse |
|---|---|
| Location | 1-652-1 Tokamachi, Nagai City, Yamagata Prefecture, and other lots |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Building) |
| Year Designated | Registered 2008/4/18 (Heisei 20) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | 19 metres by 7.6 metres, building area 142 square metres |
| Owner | Not listed in the Agency for Cultural Affairs records |
| Public Access | Not visible from the street. No public interior access is announced |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs, Database of National Cultural Properties: Naganuma General Partnership Company Brewing Storehouse
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/101/00006986
- Yamagata Tourism: Naganuma Gomei Kaisha, Nagai Tourism Bureau entry (Japanese)
- https://yamagatakanko.com/attractions/detail_11263.html
- Naganuma Gomei Kaisha: About the Brewery (Japanese)
- https://soumura.com/about.html
Last verified: 2026.09.26
