As long as there’s been a Japan, there’s been sake. At least that’s the message I receive as I wander through the three-story history museum at Otokoyama Sake Brewery near Arashiyama, Hokkaido.
If ever there was a cathedral to the production and consumption of Japanese rice wine, this is it.
Here you find room after room of sake utensils, sake tools, and sake barrels, along with Ukiyo-e woodblock prints depicting samurais and geishas from days long past, getting sloshed on the local brew. Video displays and dioramas abound, introducing the ancient sake-making process that dates from the Edo-era (1603 – 1868).
Although exceedingly informative and interesting, the museum displays are but a prelude to what we visitors have all been waiting for: the sake tasting! Because that’s what breweries are all about, right?
To access the tasting room, I first need to leave the museum building, cross the circular Ochoko Plaza (said to be shaped like a sake cup), and pass the 12-meter-long children’s slide in the shape of a sake bottle. Although innocent enough, the metaphor doesn’t escape me: Japanese children tumbling in delight out of the most-fun place in the world – a container of alcohol.
Japanese Sake—generational fun for the whole family!
Sticking with the family-friendly theme, the tasting area is more entertainment complex and gift shop than saloon. For example, there’s a section where you can take selfies dressed in a traditional sake-making jacket. There’s a café where the drinks are all made from water used for brewing sake. You can even purchase a “rice latte” or a “rice latte soft-serve ice cream.” I opt for a hot coffee laced with “Otokoyama’s special super sweet syrup made only from rice.” When in Hokkaido…
At last, I arrive at the tasting area, both staffed and self-serve. I opt for the latter option, paying a few bucks for a handful of drink tokens which I promptly insert into one of three sake dispensers: essentially dry sake, drier sake, and drier sake still. It’s all pretty delicious, I must say, and mighty strong! I force myself to stop as I feel my tipsiness rising.
Not to worry. This is safety-conscious Japan! The drinkers in your group are prohibited from driving afterwards. Upon paying for my drink tokens, a stern staffer asks point blank: “Who is your driver? I need to see his license. It cannot be you!”
Strict admonitions aside, the Otokoyama Sake Brewery is a fun place to visit. I learned a lot about the sake-making process. I tasted their local specialty. I enjoyed some “grainy” coffee. Next time, I’ll have to try the slide.
(The Otokoyama Sake Brewery wasn’t a planned stop on our trip. Before setting out, we had made a list of all our “must-visits” in the area. Sake breweries weren’t on our itinerary. Nevertheless, as we drove by, I said to my friend, “Hey, that looks like an interesting experience. Whadya say we stop?”
How often do we get caught up in our plans and agendas, failing to leave room for serendipity and happenstance? As John Lennon said, “Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.” A good reminder the next time you’re sitting with your friends or family, talking about the schedule for the day, when perhaps you should be noticing what’s going on in the room, what’s going on with your relationships, what’s going on in your own heart.)