Who will enjoy this brewery
- People who want to look for a sake made in small quantities and rarely seen, at liquor stores in Nagano City or Matsumoto (the brewery offers neither brewery tours nor sales at the brewery)
- People who would like to try sake from a brewery where a woman born into the brewery family became the toji (master brewer), the person responsible for making the sake
- People who want to try nigori and junmai sake made with Nagano Prefecture’s sake rice “Miyama Nishiki (美山錦)”
About Shusen Kurano
Shusen Kurano (酒千蔵野) is a brewery in Kawanakajima (川中島町), Nagano City, Nagano Prefecture. It was founded around 1540. In 1963 it became the limited company Chino Shuzojo (有限会社千野酒造場), and in 2007 it changed to its current name, Shusen Kurano Inc. (株式会社酒千蔵野).
千野麻里子 was born the only daughter of the brewery family. She studied brewing and microbiology at Tokyo University of Agriculture and trained for two years at the national brewing research institute before returning to Kawanakajima. She joined the brewery in 1992, trained under the previous toji, and became toji in 2000.
The brands are the brewery’s flagship “Kawanakajima 幻舞 (川中島 幻舞)” and the long-established “Katsura Masamune (桂正宗)”.
Shusen Kurano offers neither brewery tours nor sales of sake at the brewery. You buy its sake at the stockists whose list the brewery publishes (checked on October 29, 2026).
Land lying between the Sai River and the Chikuma River
Kawanakajima is a town in the south of the Nagano Basin (Zenkoji-daira). Its name is known from the “Battles of Kawanakajima” of the Sengoku period. It is an alluvial fan between two rivers, the Sai River, which flows from the Northern Alps, and the Chikuma River, and it has long been irrigated, fertile, well-watered land.
The brewery’s brewing water is underground water from the Chikuma and Sai rivers, drawn up from a well inside the brewery. Nagano Prefecture’s sake rice “Miyama Nishiki” is grown under contract with local farmers. The brewery works with the farmers from the stage of preparing the soil.
Shusen Kurano is a family in which women have supported the brewery for generations. There was a time when women were not allowed into the places where sake was made.
Two brands
The brewery has two pillars: “Katsura Masamune”, with the taste handed down through the generations, and a new taste aimed at young people. The leading example of the new taste is “Kawanakajima 幻舞”.
- “Kawanakajima 幻舞” — a limited brand made in small quantities. It is a full-bodied sake that values the umami of handcrafting, with a lively aroma and a clean acidity. There is a “daiginjo”, with half or more of the outer part of the rice polished away and a small amount of brewer’s alcohol added; a “ginjo”, with 40% or more of the outer part of the rice polished away and a small amount of brewer’s alcohol added; and a “tokubetsu honjozo”, with a small amount of brewer’s alcohol added and made either with 40% or more of the outer part of the rice polished away or by a special production method. The daiginjo has a lively, melon-like aroma
- “Junmai Nigori-zake Kawanakajima (純米 にごり酒 川中島)” — a nigori made only from rice, rice koji and water, with Miyama Nishiki from Nagano Prefecture polished to the point where 35% of the outer part of the rice is removed (a rice polishing ratio of 65%). The moromi (fermenting mash) is finely strained to give it a smooth feel in the mouth. This sake accounts for about 30% of the brewery’s shipments. Nigori is introduced in Nigori-zake: Cloudy Sake
- “Seishu Kawanakajima Tokubetsu Junmai-shu (清酒 川中島 特別純米酒)” — 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. Within its softness it has body and a crisp finish, and it is a sake to drink with meals
- “Katsura Masamune” — the katsura tree has a pleasant fragrance, and it is said that if you dig beneath the tree, water will spring up, so the name likens the good fragrance and the water to sake. There are “Mukashizake (昔酒)”, a genshu (undiluted sake) finished without adding water, with an alcohol content of 21 degrees, and freshly pressed nama genshu that has been neither pasteurized nor diluted, among others
The rice and the rice polishing ratio differ from product to product, so please check the label for the type.
Visiting the brewery
About brewery tours and sales at the brewery
Shusen Kurano does not offer brewery tours. It does not sell sake at the brewery either (checked on October 29, 2026). Please buy its sake at the stockists in “Where to buy Shusen Kurano’s sake” below.
Inquiries to the brewery are by phone (026-284-4062), and calls are taken on weekdays 9:00–12:00 and 14:00–16:30 (excluding Saturdays, Sundays and national holidays).
Opening days and tour arrangements may change. Please check the brewery’s official information before visiting.
Where to buy Shusen Kurano’s sake
The brewery publishes a list, “Where to Buy Shusen Kurano Sake (Kawanakajima 幻舞 retailers)” (酒千蔵野のお酒を買えるお店) (checked on October 29, 2026). It lists a little over 50 stores from Hokkaido to Fukuoka, mainly in Nagano Prefecture and the Kanto region. Because the brewery makes only small quantities, it says the sake is often not in stock at the stores. Please ask each store about stock and how it sells the sake.
These are the main stores in areas that are easy for travelers to stop by.
| Area | Store | Address | Store website |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matsumoto, Nagano | 相澤酒店 (Aizawa Saketen) | 長野県松本市中央1-8-8 Open in Google Maps | http://www.mcci.or.jp/www/kousetsu/ |
| Tokyo | 升新商店 (Masushin Shoten) | 東京都豊島区池袋2-23-2 Open in Google Maps | http://www.masushin.co.jp/ |
| Sendai, Miyagi | 錦本店 (Nishiki Honten) | 宮城県仙台市青葉区錦町1-2-18 Open in Google Maps | https://www.nishikihonten.jp/ |
- In Nagano City, 8 stores are on the list (including ones in 篠ノ井, 松代 and 戸隠)
- For other stores, please check the brewery’s list. The list may include old information, so it is a good idea to phone a store before visiting
- “幻舞” is a limited brand and may not come in
Before you buy
- 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 Nagano Prefecture are gathered on our Nagano Prefecture page.
Brewery facts
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Brewery | 株式会社酒千蔵野 (Shusen Kurano) |
| Founded | Around 1540 |
| Toji | 千野麻里子 (became toji in 2000) |
| Address | 〒381-2226 長野県長野市川中島町今井368-1 Open in Google Maps |
| Phone | 026-284-4062 (fax 026-284-4063). Calls taken on weekdays 9:00–12:00 and 14:00–16:30 |
| Main brands | Kawanakajima 幻舞 (川中島 幻舞), Katsura Masamune (桂正宗) |
| Official website | https://shusen.jp/ |
| Brewery tours | Not offered (checked on October 29, 2026) |
| Direct sales | No sales at the brewery (checked on October 29, 2026) |
| List of stockists | Published (“Where to Buy Shusen Kurano Sake”) |
| English support | No English pages could be found on the official website |