Who will enjoy this brewery
- People who want to buy Kochi sake at a liquor store in Kochi City (there is no information about brewery tours or sales at the brewery)
- People who want to try sake that keeps the fresh taste it has just after pressing
- People travelling in a group of 8 or more who would like a meal at a restaurant set in a converted sake brewery building (reservation required)
About Arisawa
Arisawa (アリサワ) is a brewery in Tosayamada, Kami (香美市土佐山田町), Kochi Prefecture, that makes the brand “Bunkajin (文佳人)”. It was founded in 1877 (Meiji 10). The 5th-generation head of the family also serves as toji (master brewer), and works on making ginjo sake.
Arisawa has not published any information about brewery tours or sales at the brewery (checked on October 27, 2026). The brewery has no official website, and no list of stockists has been published.
A town on the Monobe River
Tosayamada is a town in Kami, in the basin of the Monobe River (物部川). Part of the brewery’s old buildings has now been converted into a restaurant (introduced under “Visiting the brewery”).
“Bunkajin” is a name meaning “a cultured, beautiful woman”. It was given by the 2nd-generation head of Arisawa, after En (おえん), the daughter of Nonaka Kenzan (野中兼山), a figure well known in Kochi.
Every care until pressing, nothing added after
These are words that Arisawa holds up (from the “brewery introductions” of the Kochi prefectural sake brewers’ association, 高知県酒造組合).
“Take every care until pressing; add nothing after pressing” (「搾るまでは手間をかけ、搾ってからは手を加えず」)
At Arisawa, all Bunkajin is brewed in small batches of 1,000 kg or less, and the moromi (the fermenting mash) is managed closely. For pressing, the brewery uses a traditional “sakabune (酒槽, a press in which bags of moromi are stacked in a box and pressed from above)”. After pressing, the sake is pasteurized once after bottling (hi-ire, heat pasteurization), then chilled right away and kept in a freezer held at hyo-on (a low temperature just short of freezing). What the brewery aims for is sake that is fresh, refreshing and never tiring to drink.
The sake called Bunkajin
Bunkajin includes the following products (checked on October 27, 2026).
- Bunkajin Daiginjo Genshu (大吟醸原酒) — A “daiginjo”: more than half of the outer part of the rice is polished away, and a small amount of brewer’s alcohol is added. “Genshu” is sake whose alcohol content has not been adjusted by adding water
- Bunkajin Junmai Ginjo 吟の夢 (純米吟醸 吟の夢) — A “junmai ginjo”: made only from rice, rice koji and water, with 40% or more of the outer part of the rice polished away, and fermented slowly at a low temperature
- Bunkajin Liseur Junmai Ginjo (リズール 純米吟醸) — “Liseur” is French for “a person who reads a text deeply”. The name was given in the hope that people would savour Bunkajin, a name connected with literature, slowly, as if reading a book
There are also limited-edition sakes for each season. The rice used and the rice polishing ratio differ from product to product, so please check the label for the type.
Visiting the brewery
No information about brewery tours or sales at the brewery
Arisawa has not published any information about brewery tours or sales at the brewery (checked on October 27, 2026).
Bunzo (美酒百膳 文蔵), a restaurant in a converted brewery building
There is a restaurant, “Bunzo (美酒百膳 文蔵)”, in a 150-year-old Arisawa brewery building that has been converted. It is a place where you can eat dishes from Kochi’s mountains and sea while drinking the brewery’s sake.
| Bunzo (美酒百膳 文蔵) (checked on October 27, 2026) | |
|---|---|
| Address | 〒782-0032 高知県香美市土佐山田町西本町1-4-32 Open in Google Maps |
| Reservations | Reservation required. You must book at least one week before your visit |
| Group size | Banquet courses are for 8 or more people (up to 45). Group lunches can be arranged on request |
| Opening hours | 11:00–14:30, 17:00–23:00 |
| Phone | 0887-53-3055 |
Bunzo is a restaurant of 株式会社三膳 (the company that runs Bunzo). It is not Arisawa’s brewery shop.
Getting there
Bunzo is a short walk from Tosa-Yamada Station on JR Shikoku. Please check train times on the JR Shikoku official website. It is reassuring to check the last trains for both the outward and return journeys.
Opening days and tour arrangements may change. Please check the brewery’s official information before visiting.
Where to buy Arisawa’s sake
Arisawa does not publish a list of stockists (checked on October 27, 2026). In Kochi City, Bunkajin products appear on the websites of the following stores. We have not confirmed whether they are authorized retailers (tokuyakuten) of the brewery.
| Area | Store | Address | Store website |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kochi City | 安岡酒店BLUES | 高知県高知市九反田 | https://www.yasuoka-sake.com/ |
| Kochi City | たまーるか土佐酒（Yショップとき） | 高知県高知市浦戸 | https://www.tosazake.jp/ |
To find a stockist near you, please contact Arisawa by phone (0887-52-3177).
Before you buy
- What each store carries and its stock differ from store to store. Seasonal products may not come in, 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
Other breweries in Kochi Prefecture are gathered on our Kochi Prefecture page.
Brewery facts
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Brewery | 株式会社アリサワ (Arisawa) |
| Founded | 1877 (Meiji 10) |
| Address | 高知県香美市土佐山田町西本町1-4-1 Open in Google Maps |
| Phone | 0887-52-3177 (fax 0887-52-4415) |
| bunkajin@sunny.ocn.ne.jp | |
| Main brand | Bunkajin (文佳人) |
| Official website | None |
| Brewery tours | No information published (checked on October 27, 2026) |
| Sales at the brewery | No information published |
| List of stockists | Not published (checked on October 27, 2026) |
| English support | No English official page |