Who will enjoy this brewery
- People traveling in Kanagawa Prefecture who want to visit a hot spring in the mountains and a sake brewery
- Groups of six or more who want to book a tour to see the old storehouse and the brewing work (tours are paid)
- People who want to buy sake as a souvenir at the brewery shop on the way back from hiking in Tanzawa or from Nanasawa Onsen
About Koganei Shuzo
Koganei Shuzo (黄金井酒造) is a brewery in Nanasawa, Atsugi, Kanagawa Prefecture. It was founded in 1818 (Bunsei 1), and its brand is “Sakarimasu (盛升)”. The representative is the eighth generation, 黄金井康巳. Besides sake, it also makes shochu, the craft beer “さがみビール”, craft gin, mirin and more.
Koganei Shuzo accepts paid brewery tours by reservation. Tours are for groups of 6 to 20 people. At the brewery shop, you can buy sake without joining a tour (checked on October 29, 2026. For conditions, see “Visiting the brewery”).
At the foot of Tanzawa, in the hot-spring village of Nanasawa
The brewery stands at the eastern foot of the Tanzawa (丹沢) mountains, which rise in the west of Kanagawa Prefecture. Nearby are the inns of Nanasawa Onsen, east of Oyama (大山), as well as Kanagawa Prefectural Nanasawa Forest Park and hiking trails.
The founder, 黄金井伝四郎, was born the son of a tofu maker. Wanting to run a business that would serve society, he started a small shop making cloudy sake (nigori-zake), and that was the beginning of this brewery’s sake making. 伝四郎 dug a well and used the groundwater he drew up as brewing water. This groundwater is still used for sake making today.
The brewery’s trade name was “升屋”. Until before the war, its sake was sold under the name “小金井櫻”, but after the war, with the wish that the business would prosper more and more, the main brand was renamed “Sakarimasu”.
From Echigo toji to a locally trained toji
Koganei Shuzo originally invited a toji (master brewer, the person responsible for sake making) from Echigo (越後) in Niigata Prefecture. In winter, the toji came to the brewery with people from his village as kurabito (brewery workers), and they made sake together.
As the toji and kurabito grew older, the brewery began training its own toji. Learning sake making from the ground up under a veteran Echigo toji, the brewery has made its sake with a locally trained toji since the brewing season that began in autumn 2002. The current head brewer is 飯塚-san.
Sakarimasu’s main sakes
- “Sakarimasu Junmai Daiginjo (純米大吟醸 盛升)” — A “junmai daiginjo”: made only from rice, rice koji and water, with half or more of the outer part of the rice polished away
- “Sakarimasu Junmai Ginjo (純米吟醸 盛升)” — 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
- “Sakarimasu Tokubetsu Junmai (特別純米 盛升)” — A “tokubetsu junmai-shu”: made only from rice, rice koji and water, with 40% or more of the outer part of the rice polished away
- “Sakarimasu Yamahai Junmai (山廃純米 盛升)” — A junmai-shu made with “yamahai”, a traditional, labor-intensive way of making the “shubo (酒母, yeast starter)” that starts fermentation
- “Junmai-shu 伝四郎” — A junmai-shu named after the founder. It uses only “はるみ”, a table rice grown in Atsugi
- “Junmai Ginjo 旋 TSUMUJI” — A sake from the “Atsugi-Isehara Sake Rice Project”, started by people in Atsugi and Isehara (伊勢原). It uses only the sake rice Gohyakumangoku grown in Isehara
- “Dam-aged sake (ダム貯蔵酒)” — Genshu (undiluted sake) matured in an inspection tunnel deep inside the nearby Miyagase Dam
- “The sparkling sake SHUSHUL (しゅしゅる)” — A sake with bubbles. Sake with bubbles is introduced on our sparkling sake page
In winter, the new-season sake “しぼりたて (freshly pressed new sake)” is also released (from early November to around March). The ingredient rice and the rice polishing ratio differ from product to product, so please check the label for the type.
Visiting the brewery
Brewery tours by reservation (6 people or more)
Brewery tours are by reservation. Please apply by email or phone at least one week in advance (checked on October 29, 2026).
- Fee: 1,000 yen per person (tax included). Comes with a 500-yen coupon for the brewery shop
- Group size: 6–20 people
- Duration: About 40 minutes. The old storehouse → the brewing building (from a viewing room) → a video on sake making → tasting
- Tour days: Company business days only. The company is closed on Sundays, national holidays and, in summer, Saturdays (different from the shop’s closing days). Please check business days on Koganei Shuzo’s business calendar
- Notes: You cannot go inside the brewing building. Tours may be declined when there is no one to guide, or from November to March when brewing is busy. Because the tour includes tasting, people under 20 cannot take part
- Reservations and inquiries: Phone 046-248-0124, email info@koganeishuzou.com
If you are going to drive, please do not taste. In Japan, drunk driving is prohibited by law.
Brewery shop
The brewery has its own shop, which sells Sakarimasu as well as shochu, craft beer, craft gin and more. Tasting is not available at the shop.
- Opening hours: 9:00–16:30
- Closed: Sundays (open on Saturdays and national holidays). It may close temporarily over the New Year holidays or in bad weather; this is announced on the brewery’s social media
- Payment: Major credit cards and PayPay are accepted
On Sundays, you can buy Koganei Shuzo’s sake at the brewery-run stand inside the nearby “七沢温泉食の市” (a food market at Nanasawa Onsen).
Getting there
Address: 〒243-0121 神奈川県厚木市七沢769
- By bus: Buses toward Nanasawa run from Hon-Atsugi Station, Aiko-Ishida Station and Isehara Station on the Odakyu Line; each takes about 20 minutes. Get off at “馬場リハビリ入口” (bus stop) and walk about 3 minutes. Please check the bus route and times on the Kanagawa Chuo Kotsu timetable. Some routes run infrequently, so please also check the return bus times in advance
- By car: From the “愛甲森の里入り口” intersection on Route 246, head toward 森の里
Travel times are estimates (checked on October 29, 2026).
Opening days and visitor arrangements may change. Please check the brewery’s official information before visiting.
Where to buy Koganei Shuzo’s sake
The brewery does not publish a list of stockists (checked on October 29, 2026). The easiest places for travelers to buy are the following, run by the brewery itself:
- Brewery shop: As described under “Visiting the brewery” above (closed on Sundays)
- The brewery-run stand at 七沢温泉食の市: Also open on Sundays
- Official online shop: You can order sake from the Koganei Shuzo online shop
Before you buy
- The freshly pressed new sake and seasonal nama genshu may be out of stock depending on the time of year.
- 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 Kanagawa Prefecture are gathered on our Kanagawa Prefecture page.
Brewery facts
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Brewery | 黄金井酒造株式会社 (Koganei Shuzo) |
| Founded | 1818 (Bunsei 1) |
| Representative | 黄金井康巳 (eighth generation) |
| Address | 〒243-0121 神奈川県厚木市七沢769 Open in Google Maps |
| Phone | 046-248-0124 (fax 046-247-8089) |
| Main brand | Sakarimasu (盛升) |
| Official website | https://koganeishuzou.com/ |
| Brewery tours | By reservation (at least one week ahead). Company business days only. 6–20 people, 1,000 yen per person, about 40 minutes (checked on October 29, 2026) |
| Brewery shop | The brewery shop (9:00–16:30, closed on Sundays) and the brewery-run stand at 七沢温泉食の市 (open on Sundays too) |
| List of stockists | Not published (checked on October 29, 2026) |