Who will enjoy this brewery
- People who want to look for sake from Mie Prefecture at restaurants and liquor stores during their trip (Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten does not offer brewery tours, tasting or retail sales)
- People who want to compare different types of sake within the same brand
- People interested in the sake used for the toast at the G7 Ise-Shima Summit in 2016
About Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten
Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten (清水清三郎商店) is a sake brewery in Wakamatsu-higashi, near the sea in Suzuka, Mie Prefecture (三重県鈴鹿市). It was founded in 1869 as “大黒屋清水清三郎商店 (the name at its founding)”. Its main brands are “Zaku (作)” and “Suzukagawa (鈴鹿川)”.
The brewery does not offer brewery tours, tasting or retail sales (checked on October 6, 2026). Even if you visit the brewery, you cannot tour it or buy sake.
Zaku won a gold prize at the Zenkoku Shinshu Kanpyokai (National New Sake Competition) for the Reiwa 7 brewing year (National Research Institute of Brewing and Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association), whose results were announced in May 2026. At the International Wine Challenge (IWC) in the United Kingdom, the brewery was named “Sake Brewer of the Year” in 2021.
Water from the Suzuka Mountains and rice from the Ise Plain
Suzuka is a coastal town in the north of Mie Prefecture. Underground water (water that has flowed underground) that springs from the Suzuka Mountains (鈴鹿山脈) flows into the wide Ise Plain (伊勢平野), where rice is grown.
Since long ago, Suzuka has been called “Umasake Suzuka no Kuni (味酒鈴鹿國)”. It means “the land of Suzuka, where delicious sake is made”.
The label of the other brand, “Suzukagawa”, uses patterns from “Ise-katagami (伊勢型紙)”, a traditional industry of Suzuka. Ise-katagami are paper stencils used when dyeing kimono.
Small tanks, brewing all year round
Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten makes sake in fermentation tanks that are smaller than usual. This is because the brewers can watch every corner of the tank, and it is easier to control fermentation in response to small changes from day to day. Its production volume is not large.
This brewery has brought in equipment such as cooling systems and brews throughout the year. The kurabito (brewery workers; the people who make sake) are also employees who work throughout the year, not only in certain seasons. The brewery and head office buildings were rebuilt in stages from 2019, and all of the work was finished in 2022.
The toji (master brewer; the person in charge of making sake), Tomohiro Uchiyama (内山智広), is from Suzuka. He studied biotechnology at a vocational school in Nagoya before entering the world of sake making. Uchiyama holds the following words as his creed:
“I put my whole heart and soul into sake making, and when the sake is finished, the one thing I never want is the regret of thinking, ‘If only I had done that back then.’”
「酒造りに全身全霊をかけ、酒が出来上がったときに『あのときにああしていれば』という後悔だけはしたくない」
— Toji Tomohiro Uchiyama (from “OUR STORY” on Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten’s official website)
The name “Zaku” and its types
“作 (Zaku)” is a kanji that means “to make”. The name carries the idea that the true value of sake lies in creating it not only by the makers but together with the people who drink it.
Zaku comes in many types, made with different yeasts and different methods. The brewery describes the features shared by Zaku like this:
“The Zaku series has a variety of aromas, made by using several different yeasts and by changing the way it is made. However, every sake features a soft taste when you take it into your mouth and a crisp finish, together with a clear, refined clarity.”
「作シリーズは、数種の異なる酵母や作り方を変えることで、多様な香りの種類があります。しかしどの酒も口に含んだ時の柔らかな味わいとキレの良さ。クリアで洗練された透明感を合わせもつことを特徴としています。」
— from “ZAKU” on Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten’s official website
Here are three different types from the brewery’s product list (checked on October 6, 2026; prices are not shown).
- Zaku Gen no Tomo (作 玄乃智) — A “junmai-shu”, made only from rice, rice koji and water. The brewery says it can be drunk chilled or as kan (warming sake)
- Zaku Megumi no Tomo (作 恵乃智) — A “junmai ginjo”, made only from rice, rice koji and water, with 40% or more of the outside of the rice polished away and fermented slowly at low temperatures
- Zaku Satori (作 智) — A “junmai daiginjo”, made only from rice, rice koji and water, with more than half of the outside of the rice polished away. The brewery places it as the top product among its own junmai daiginjo. The sake rice is Yamada Nishiki (山田錦). It is “shizukudori (滴取り)”: the moromi (fermenting mash) is put in bags and hung, and only the drops that fall without any pressure are collected
The toast at the Ise-Shima Summit
On May 26, 2016, at the working lunch of the G7 Ise-Shima Summit held in Mie Prefecture, “作 智 純米大吟醸 滴取り (Zaku Satori junmai daiginjo shizukudori)” was used for the toast. At the cocktail reception on the same day, the junmai-shu “Zaku Ho no Tomo (作 穂乃智)” was served.
Limited products for each sake rice
Zaku also has limited-quantity products that use only one variety of sake rice. In 2026, the brewery released products using Aiyama (愛山) in February, Ise Nishiki (伊勢錦) in April, Omachi (雄町) in June, and in August “神の穂”, a sake rice developed by Mie Prefecture. The ingredients and brewing methods differ from product to product, so please check the label for the type.
Visiting the brewery
Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten does not offer brewery tours, tasting or retail sales (checked on October 6, 2026). It does not accept visits to the brewery either.
If you want to drink Zaku, you will need to look for restaurants on your trip or liquor stores that carry Zaku. Other breweries in Mie Prefecture are introduced on the Mie page.
Opening days and tour arrangements may change. Please check the brewery’s official information before visiting.
Where to buy Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten’s sake
Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten does not publish a list of stockists or authorized retailers (checked on October 6, 2026). The brewery does not sell at retail, and its official website has no online shop.
Some stores on the internet say they carry Zaku, but these are not on a list published by the brewery, so this page does not name any stores.
Zaku is also introduced in Top 10 sake brands chosen by Japanese sake lovers.
Before you buy
- Zaku has many products, and the ingredients and brewing methods differ from product to product. Please check the label for the type.
- The limited products for each sake rice and the seasonal products are made in limited quantities. Whether a store carries them, and its stock, differ from store to store, so please check with the store before visiting.
- 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 |
|---|---|
| Brewery | 清水清三郎商店株式会社 (Shimizu Seizaburo Shoten Ltd.) |
| Founded | 1869 (the 2nd year of the Meiji era). Incorporated as a company in 1952 |
| Representative | Representative Director 清水慎一郎 |
| Toji | Tomohiro Uchiyama (内山智広) |
| Address | 〒510-0225 三重県鈴鹿市若松東3-9-33 Open in Google Maps |
| Phone | 059-385-0011 |
| Main brands | Zaku (作) / Suzukagawa (鈴鹿川) |
| Official website | https://seizaburo.jp/ |
| Brewery tours | Not available |
| Brewery shop | None (no retail sales or tasting) |
| List of stockists | Not published (checked on October 6, 2026) |
| English support | The official website has English pages |