Who will enjoy this brewery
- People who want to look at sake brewery buildings built in the Meiji and Taisho eras from the outside
- People who want to visit Yuzawa in Akita Prefecture on a weekday and choose sake at the brewery shop (you can also taste sake at the shop if you ask)
- People who are looking for “Hanamura (花邑)”, a sake with a connection to the brewery of Juyondai (十四代)
- People who are not making a tour inside the brewery the purpose of their trip (Ryozeki Shuzo’s brewery tours are currently suspended)
About Ryozeki Shuzo
Ryozeki Shuzo (両関酒造) is a brewery in Yuzawa (湯沢市), Akita Prefecture. It was founded in 1874. Its brands are “Ryozeki (両関)”, the same name as the company, and brands such as “Hanamura (花邑)” and “Suigyoku (翠玉)”, which are sold only at authorized retailers (tokuyakuten: liquor stores with a trading contract with the brewery).
The name “Ryozeki” is said to have been given, likening the sake to a famous Japanese sword, with the wish that it would be both the ozeki of the East and the ozeki of the West (ozeki is a high rank in sumo).
Brewery tours are currently suspended (checked on September 30, 2026). The shop inside the building is open on weekdays.
The earthen storehouses of Yuzawa, a sake-producing area
Yuzawa, where Ryozeki Shuzo stands, is one of the snowiest places in Akita Prefecture.
Among the brewery’s buildings, the main building, built in 1923, and four earthen storehouses, Storehouses No. 1 to No. 4, built between 1892 and 1916, became national Registered Tangible Cultural Properties in 1996. 1996 was the year the national system for registering cultural properties was created, and Ryozeki Shuzo’s five buildings were among the first registered in Japan. The four earthen storehouses are now used for storing sake.
The main building is a two-story wooden building that served as both office and residence. Its windows with fine lattices and the layered beams visible on the gable end of its large roof are distinctive, and it has long been loved as a symbol of Yuzawa as a sake-producing area. From the end of the Meiji era into the Taisho era, Ryozeki Shuzo won first prizes at the National Sake Exhibition (全国清酒品評会), and together with the “Ryozeki” brand, it made Akita’s sake known across Japan.
From quantity to quality, and “Hanamura”
For a long time, Ryozeki Shuzo mainly made “futsu-shu”, sake that does not carry a special designation (tokutei meisho: categories such as junmai and ginjo). Today it has switched to sake making centered on special designation sake, putting effort and time into each step.
One of the turning points was “Hanamura”. While Ryozeki Shuzo was searching for ways to make high-quality sake, Takagi Shuzo (高木酒造; brand “Juyondai”) in Yamagata Prefecture introduced it to the sake rice (rice suited to making sake) varieties Omachi (雄町) and Riku-u-den (陸羽田), and it had the opportunity to hear about their brewing. The name “Hanamura” was also a gift from Takagi Shuzo. Ryozeki Shuzo took this back home, went through repeated trial and error using the skills its own kurabito (brewery workers) had built up, and completed “Hanamura”.
“Hanamura” now has products for each rice variety used. There are eight kinds: Aiyama (愛山), Yamada Nishiki (山田錦), Sake Mirai (酒未来), Omachi, Dewa Sansan (出羽燦々), Akita Sake Komachi (秋田酒こまち), Misato Nishiki (美郷錦) and Riku-u-den. “Suigyoku” is a brand made with rice from Akita Prefecture, using the brewing techniques of “Hanamura”.
Here are also some of the brewery’s products for general sale.
- Junmai Daiginjo Setsugekka (雪月花) — A “junmai daiginjo”: made only from rice, rice koji and water, with more than half of the outer part of the rice polished away. The brewery positions it as its flagship product
- Ryozeki Junmai-shu — A “junmai-shu” made with rice from Akita Prefecture. It is made only from rice, rice koji and water, with 40% or more of the outer part of the rice polished away
- Ryozeki Ginmon (銀紋) — A long-running best-selling product of the brewery
The ingredients and brewing methods differ from product to product, so please check the label for the type.
Ryozeki Shuzo’s “Ryozeki” was among the prize-winning sakes at the Zenkoku Shinshu Kanpyokai (National New Sake Competition) for the Reiwa 7 brewing year (organized by the National Research Institute of Brewing and the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association; announced on May 20, 2026).
Visiting the brewery
Brewery tours are currently suspended (checked on September 30, 2026).
The place travelers can drop in at is the shop inside the building. It sells sake and small goods, and a tasting is prepared if you ask.
| Ryozeki Shuzo’s shop (checked on September 30, 2026) | |
|---|---|
| Opening hours | Weekdays 9:00–11:30, 13:30–16:00 |
| Closed | Saturdays, Sundays, public holidays, the Obon holidays, and the New Year holidays |
| Tasting | Prepared if you ask |
| Groups | Please contact the brewery by phone in advance |
| Parking | Available (large vehicles also possible) |
| Phone | 0183-73-3143 |
| English support | Not published |
You can see the exteriors of the buildings that are national Registered Tangible Cultural Properties from the road.
Getting there
- Train: About a 20-minute walk from JR Yuzawa Station
- By car: About 3 minutes from the Yuzawa Interchange on the Akita Expressway
Travel times are estimates (checked in September 2026). Please check train times with JR East. Some lines have few services, so it is safest to check the last trains for both the outward and return journeys. If you taste sake at the shop, please do not drive.
Opening days and tour arrangements may change. Please check the brewery’s official information before visiting.
Where to buy Ryozeki Shuzo’s sake
Products sold only at authorized retailers, such as “Hanamura” and “Suigyoku”, are not sold by Ryozeki Shuzo itself. They are sold at the stores on the list of Hanamura authorized retailers published by the brewery. Because they are made in small quantities, they may be out of stock.
Here are the main authorized retailers along travelers’ routes (stockists are based on the brewery’s official list, checked on September 30, 2026).
| Area | Store | Address | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yuzawa | 小川屋 | 秋田県湯沢市柳町2-3-24 Open in Google Maps | 0183-73-3213 |
| Akita city | 菅久商店 | 秋田県秋田市中通4-14-8 Open in Google Maps | 018-833-6336 |
| Sendai | 錦本店 | 宮城県仙台市青葉区錦町1-2-18 Open in Google Maps | 022-224-1411 |
| Sendai | 池田酒店 | 宮城県仙台市青葉区上杉3-8-38 Open in Google Maps | 022-222-6797 |
| Tokyo | 水橋 | 東京都港区六本木3-3-4 Open in Google Maps | 03-3583-5245 |
| Tokyo | 壽屋 | 東京都台東区上野1-2-6 Open in Google Maps | 03-3831-6630 |
| Tokyo | 佐々木酒店 | 東京都中央区日本橋人形町2-20-3 Open in Google Maps | 03-3666-7662 |
| Kyoto | にしむら酒店 | 京都府京都市左京区北白川久保田町3 Open in Google Maps | 075-781-3049 |
| Osaka | 永田商店 | 大阪府大阪市北区天満4-5-15 Open in Google Maps | 06-6351-1971 |
There are also authorized retailers throughout Japan, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, and the list includes 96 stores in total. The brewery’s list does not include the stores’ websites, so phone numbers are given here. The products each store carries, and its stock, differ from store to store, so please contact the store before visiting.
Products for general sale, such as “Ryozeki” and “Setsugekka”, are sold at the brewery shop and also at the brewery’s official “Ryozeki Online Shop”. Shipping costs are set for each prefecture within Japan, and orders arrive within a week after payment is confirmed. It may be difficult to receive an order during a short stay, so please allow plenty of time in your schedule.
Before you buy
- “Hanamura” is divided into products by rice variety. Please check the label for the type.
- Limited and seasonal products may not arrive at a store.
- If you are taking sake home abroad: Bottles over 100 ml cannot go in your carry-on bag before security screening. Put them in your checked baggage, or buy them at a duty-free shop after security screening. Please check in advance what applies if you have a connecting flight, and the import limits of the country you are arriving in. → Travel tips
Brewery facts
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Company | 両関酒造株式会社 (RYOZEKI CO.,LTD.) |
| Founded | 1874 (the 7th year of the Meiji era) |
| Representative | Representative Director 伊藤康朗 |
| Address | 〒012-0813 秋田県湯沢市前森四丁目3番18号 Open in Google Maps |
| Phone | 0183-73-3143 (fax 0183-72-2515) |
| Main brands | Ryozeki (両関) / Hanamura (花邑) / Suigyoku (翠玉) / Setsugekka (雪月花) |
| Official website | https://www.ryozeki.co.jp/ |
| Brewery tours | Currently suspended (checked on September 30, 2026) |
| Brewery-owned shop | Yes (weekdays 9:00–11:30, 13:30–16:00) and the official online shop |
| List of stockists | List of Hanamura authorized retailers published (96 stores; checked on September 30, 2026) |
| Cultural property | Ryozeki Shuzo Main Building and four other buildings (national Registered Tangible Cultural Properties, registered in 1996) |
| English support | Not published |