Hi, I'm Reika, the sake lover. I'm happy to report that my review of Uaze was so well received by the Hamada Sake Brewery that they invited me to join them on a tour of their brewery's gold mine. I was delighted to receive an invitation to join the Hamada Sake Brewery's tour of Kinzan! Yay!
We went to the brewery where they make "Uwaze" and "Dayaime" and here is my report!
Reika loves Hamada Shuzo so much that she goes to visit the brewery!
So we paid a visit to the site. We are at the Satsuma Kinzan warehouse, which is run by the Hamada Shuzo brewery. This is a rare place in the world where sake is brewed in a mine cave filled with history.
While recently there have been an increasing number of games and artificial immersive experiences using AR and VR technology, the Satsuma Kinzan Brewery is a "realistic immersive space" where you can feel the "story," "time," and "aroma of maturation" with every step you take inside the mine cave. It can be said to be a "real immersive space!
It is no exaggeration to say that this is a gaming brewery!
At the entrance of the gaming brewery, a very large sign for the Satsuma Kinzan Brewery awaits you!
It is a symbol of the Edo period's shochu making process of "kame (earthenware) brewing" and "kame (earthenware) storage. It is so large that it can hold two or three people.
Next, we found an object with an explanation of the Kushikino Gold Mine, the birthplace of the Satsuma Kinzan Kura! Let's learn about the history of this facility since we are going to take care of it!
The Kanayama Storehouse is located in Kushikino, Kagoshima Prefecture, and is a certified Japanese Heritage site. Its history transcends time and space, dating back to the time when it was dug for more than 350 years.
Kagoshima Prefecture is home to Hishikari, the nation's largest gold producer, and Kushikino, the fourth largest gold producer. In fact, Kagoshima Prefecture is the largest producer of gold in Japan. The Kushikino gold mine was dug by Lord Mitsuhisa Shimazu, the lord of the Shimazu domain at that time, who was the first to find this mountain where a lot of gold could be extracted, and the mine is now closed.
You can learn about the history of the Kushikino gold mine in the museum of the Satsuma Kinzan Storehouse, so be sure to check it out!
The first thing that greets you as you enter is this large door!
This is as big as the door that the main character of Eldenring opens before the boss battle!
The museum is designed to be enjoyed while waiting for the trolley, with objects that can be touched and a Japanese-style old Japanese garden all around.
Saiga NAKWe also found a large, golden carp, which is appropriate for a storehouse with the word "gold" attached to it!
A little further on, you will find a corner selling goods!
This is all sake! I love sake!
The Satsuma Kinzan Brewery is a rarity in Japan, and is often visited by foreign tourists.
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The most popular shochu among foreigners is "shochu with gold leaf"!
Other drinks such as ume (plum) wine and sake are also available, as well as original glasses sold exclusively at the store, so be sure to check them out.
Museum where you can learn about the history of the Kushikino Gold Mine
At the trolley waiting area and museum, visitors can see real gold hidden in the ore and learn about the history of the Kushikino gold mine. The story would be too much to tell, so be sure to visit the museum at the Satsuma Kinzan Storehouse to learn a lot.
Inside the museum there are
- The process from ore to gold
- Ores containing gold
- Photographs and tools of the Kushikino Gold Mine
- A three-dimensional tunnel map of the Kushikino Gold Mine
- History of Kushikino Gold Mine
and more are available for viewing.
Visitors can learn about the depth of the history of the mine through photographs of the mining operations and pickaxes that were actually used in those days!
Take a trolley ride and see the sake being made at the Satsuma Kinzan Storehouse!
So here we are at the trolley stop. We will have a private tour this time! We will definitely return this favor with the amount of sake we drink!
So this trolley ride will take us to a dreamlike place where shochu is made and stored!
When the trolley departs, I'm as nervous as when a roller coaster starts! You can directly feel the wind from the tunnel blowing from deep inside the tunnel, and it is a very immersive experience!
Also, it seems that bats rarely appear in the tunnel, and those who have come across them are said to be the lucky ones, but they didn't appear to us (tears).
Rattling and shaking, we arrived at the Kengdong entrance at the end of the 700-meter tunnel. Then, the faint sweet aroma of sweet potato shochu is in the air. We were excited to experience something we never smelled before! The temperature inside the tunnel is around 19 degrees Celsius all year round, warm in winter and cool in summer.
The fact that there is no sunlight and a constant temperature is maintained throughout the year is the most important factor in the maturation of shochu!
The tunnel guide was Akira Tabuchi, a veteran brewery guide. It was like a realistic Minecraft space, so with my pickaxe in hand, we began our exploration!
This place also has a replica exhibit of the explosives that were used in those days for actual mining. In those days, they received the explosives here and continued digging.
Many of our ancestors used dynamite to search for gold veins. You can feel the history in even one scratch on the rock... deeply moving...
The site also preserves heavy machinery called " makiageki " used by miners to transport the ore, and visitors can learn about the workings of those days.
Mr. Reika : "Somewhere in here... gold..."
*You can't actually take it home with you.
Arriving at the shochu preparation area!
Modern shochu making is a two-stage "secondary brewing" process, but the Satsuma Kinzan brewery uses the Edo period " donburi brewing" method to continue to pass down the tradition of shochu making. By pressing the red button, a diorama doll starts to move, and Mr. Tabuchi explains the process in detail!
The shochu making process at the Kanayama Brewery is
- Special "golden malted rice" is used only at the Kanayama Brewery.
- Only sweet potatoes produced in Kagoshima are used in the brewing process.
- All the ingredients (brewing water, rice malt, yeast, and steamed and crushed sweet potatoes) are put together in a pot, and fermentation takes place.
- After the ingredients have fermented, the "moromi" is heated and the steam is cooled back to a liquid to produce the original shochu.
Through these processes, the shochu we love so much is made.
In case you are wondering, sake brewing using koji has been popular since the Edo period (1603-1868), and like soy sauce and miso making, it was the job of women to protect their families. You can drink a glass of sake just by learning the history!
The Kanayama Brewery uses a "kabuto kettle distiller" to make their shochu. This is a modern revival of the method used in the Edo period.
The perfect environment for aging at the Kushikino Gold Mine, where UV rays do not penetrate and a constant temperature is maintained, combines with Hamada Shuzo's shochu-making expertise to produce the delicious Satsuma Kinzan Brewery shochu!
More than just shochu The power spot of the Underground Tunnel Cave
There are two power spots in the Satsuma Kinzan warehouse, and the entire underground cave is overflowing with power. Even Mengele is smitten by this.
The first is the Satsuma Kaiun Shrine, dedicated to Shimazu Yoshihiro, known as one of the strongest warlords of the Warring States period. The shrine is a power spot where the "strong luck" of Shimazu Yoshihiro, who broke through the middle of the enemy in the Battle of Sekigahara and returned to Satsuma, and the "golden luck" of the gold mine where real gold lies, are truly the strongest power spots!
Reika was very excited to learn that the ore on either side of the torii gate contains gold, and that touching it will increase one's gold luck!
Reika: "You mean the more you touch it, the better? "
Reika and Rena-chan, the photographer, forgetting about themselves and touching.
There is also a fortune corner. The result...
Both of them got "Daikichi"!
What is this...? Both of us were thinking...
""Isn't there no other way but to have "Daikichi" so that everyone will be happy...? ""
Renachin interjected , "Isn't this the kind of thing that only comes with big luck?"" Mr. Reika. ..! (This guy said it!) "
But Ms. Kawano of Hamada Brewery's PR department, who was in charge this time. "No, it's not true - many people have tied their fortune to their fortune hangers with results other than great luck! "
So, let Mr. Kawano draw one, too...
I'm sure you've never wished for anything other than great luck so much, even though it is essentially a matter of congratulations. ""Mr. Kawano, please give me a medium lucky...! ""
The result.
"Chukichi."
""Oh, oh, oh, oh! """
With this, the fairness of the fortune at the Kanayama Storehouse has been maintained! Phew...
The second power spot is the Golden Kannon Bosatsu statue.
This "Golden Kannon Bosatsu" statue was erected around 1929 to pray for the safety of gold miners on their way to the mine.
As mentioned earlier, miners used dynamite and handled heavy machinery, so it is easy to imagine that there were always dangers involved. The statue of the bodhisattva, which is filled with the wishes of the people who sent it off, still watches over the sake lovers who visit the Satsuma gold mine warehouse.
Underneath, underground spring water spurts out, and the fantastic inverted image reflected in the water is enchanting.
Mr. Reika : "May you continue to drink plenty of delicious sake."
Reika gives a final "yo-yuu greeting. She seems to be more smiling than before.
The time capsule syochu liqueur "Fukurori with Maturity" is matured in the Kengdong with a message for the future.
The sight of the 1,000-liter "kame" (earthenware casks) in which the shochu made in the kengdong is stored is a sight to behold! The 1,000-liter casks are used to store the shochu that is used to make the "Fukuroiri with Maturity".
There are two types of Satsuma shochu "Kanayamagura" sold at the Kanayamagura store. The "Satsuma Shochu Kinzankura" is made with golden malted rice and stored in a cave, and has a gorgeous, mild taste. The green bottle "Satsuma Shochu Kanayamagura" is 25% alcohol and aged for 3 years. The red bottle "Satsuma Shochu Kanayamagura RED" is 35% alcohol and aged for 5 years.
The commemorative bottle, "Fukurori with Maturity," is a unique Satsuma Kinzankura shochu that can be matured in its natural environment. The label pasted on the bottle is a picture or a message from the client. The first application is for one to five years, and can be extended for any number of years for an additional fee. You can also apply at the online store " Shochu.Life ".
It is fun to look at the many messages with various wishes, such as a message to yourself five years from now, a wish for good health, or a toast for your child when he or she turns 20, and think about what you would like to write.
The celebrities' commemorative bottles, "Aged with Fortune," are also on display. Recently, a "Nishikigoi" of a comedian was created as part of a TV program. It is also fun to see tasteful messages from other well-known people such as Mr. Chihara Jr. and Mr. Teruei!
Reika's sake brewery tour ended successfully!
How was it?
I love "daiyame," and this tour was a great opportunity to visit the Satsuma Kinzan Brewery, one of Hamada Shuzo's shochu breweries. We learned about the history of Kanayama and shochu in the mystical atmosphere, and now we can enjoy another glass of shochu (gubigubi).
The Satsuma Kinzan Storehouse has been featured in a number of media, including the popular Fukuoka TV program "Asades" and the TBS series "Sekai Fushigi Hakken! The "Satsuma Kinzan Kura" is a sightseeing brewery that has been introduced in numerous media, including the popular Fukuoka TV program "Asades" and the TBS series "Sekai Fushigi Hakken! It is also a sacred site for pilgrims, and is depicted in the manga "Dandone" as "Kushikino Kinzan".
In addition, shochu made from koji (malted rice) is attracting attention from around the world, as Japan's "traditional sake brewing" has been registered as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2024. I am forever impressed by Hamada Shuzo's efforts to try a new sake.
Hamada Shuzo's sake is the best!
The Satsuma Kinzan brewery offers tours of the mine on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, with tastings available after the tour (only those over 20 years old can apply). This time, we were able to experience the tasting as well. The tasting article will be published in the second part, so please check that out as well.
The article on the tasting will be published in the second part of the tour, so please check that out as well.
For reservations for this tour of the Satsuma Kinzan brewery, please check the "Satsuma Kinzan Brewery Tour Reservation Form." If you are interested in Kanayama brewery's sake, you can purchase it from the " Kanayama Brewery's Product List ", so it is worth a look.
#薩摩金山蔵 に見学しに行ってきたにょ⛏️
坑洞内はいも焼酎の香りがふわっと香る酒好きにはたまらない空間🍶 pic.twitter.com/ueEdFVWJnT— れいか氏❤️🔥ぷりぎゅう (@SoprettyGyudon) December 18, 2024
Sorry, this article is only available in Japanese. at the moment.
