Tour of Japanese soy sauce breweries

The book on artisan soy sauce is now available

This is a travelogue by Mantaro Takahashi, the representative of "Shokunin Shoyu", who visited breweries all over Japan. It focuses on the "makers" of soy sauce, including his encounters with the brewers and subsequent anecdotes.

Shokunin Shoyu No.

Tour of Japanese soy sauce breweries

Mantaro Takahashi / Tokai Educational Research Institute Co., Ltd. / 46-size, paperback, 272 pages / 128 pages / ISBN978-4-924523-04-3

Visit over 400 soy sauce breweries

When I talk to soy sauce makers, I find myself imagining the kind of soy sauce they will make, and often it ends up tasting just like that.

A humble person's soy sauce will also be humble, and a person who boldly tries new things will make a soy sauce that is assertive. Soy sauce is regional and diverse, but I feel that the makers behind it are even more unique.

About the author: Mantaro Takahashi

Representative of "Shokunin Soy Sauce." Born in Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture in 1980. After graduating from Ritsumeikan University, he worked in sales of precision optical equipment at Keyence Corporation before retiring in 2006. He established Dento Design Kobo Co., Ltd., and has since taken a 180-degree turn, throwing himself into traditional and local industries.

Soy sauce varies from place to place

Each region has its own food culture and the soy sauce that is suited to it. If you ask someone from Kyushu, "Why is Kyushu soy sauce sweet?", they will likely respond with, "Why is Kanto soy sauce spicy?"

Making soy sauce that the people in front of you will say is delicious... I think that the taste we have today is the result of the accumulated trial and error of the artisans of that era.

Various creators

There are makers whose overflowing love for soy sauce is evident, makers who are always racking their brains in search of their ideal soy sauce, and makers who enjoy communicating with customers so much that a smile seems to be ingrained in their faces.

Soy sauce made by such makers is sure to have its fans. However, I hope that even more people will know about it. I would be delighted if this book can be a small catalyst for new connections.

Featured soy sauce breweries

At the time I began writing this book, I listed 45 breweries that were involved with Shokunin Soy Sauce. They range from Iwate Prefecture in the north to Kagoshima Prefecture in the south. The regions are diverse, but I think the personalities of the brewers are even more diverse.

Adachi Brewery (Hyogo Prefecture) / Amano Soy Sauce (Shizuoka Prefecture) / Ariya (Gunma Prefecture) / Ishimagoto Honten (Akita Prefecture) / Inoue Honten (Nara Prefecture) / Endo Soy Sauce (Shiga Prefecture) / Okubo Brewery (Nagano Prefecture) / Oka Naosaburo Shoten (Gunma Prefecture) / Okamoto Soy Sauce Brewery (Hiroshima Prefecture) / Katagami Soy Sauce (Nara Prefecture) / Kuwata Soy Sauce (Yamaguchi Prefecture) / Kondo Brewery (Tokyo) / Sakae Soy Sauce Brewery (Shizuoka Prefecture) / Sasanaga Brewery (Iwate Prefecture) / Nakasada Shoten (Aichi Prefecture) / Kaneiwa Soy Sauce Main Store (Wakayama Prefecture) / Yamahisa (Kagawa Prefecture) / Sawai Soy Sauce Main Store (Kyoto Prefecture) / Kamiho Soy Sauce (Ibaraki Prefecture) / Shokin Soy Sauce (Kagawa Prefecture) / Suehiro Soy Sauce (Hyogo Prefecture) / Suzuki Soy Sauce (Fukushima Prefecture) / Taihei (Chiba Prefecture) / Takatori Soy Sauce Abura (Okayama Prefecture) / Nagatomo Miso and Soy Sauce Brewery (Miyazaki Prefecture) / Nitto Brewery (Aichi Prefecture) / Nomura Soy Sauce (Fukui Prefecture) / Hashimoto Soy Sauce (Kumamoto Prefecture) / Hata Brewery (Toyama Prefecture) / Shichifuku Brewery Co., Ltd. (Aichi Prefecture) / Fueki Soy Sauce (Saitama Prefecture) / Fukuoka Soy Sauce Shop (Mie Prefecture) / Fukuju Soy Sauce (Tokushima Prefecture) / Marumata Shoten (Aichi Prefecture) / Mitsuru Soy Sauce Brewery (Fukuoka Prefecture) / Minamikura Shoten (Aichi Prefecture) / Miya Soy Sauce Shop (Chiba Prefecture) / Morita Soy Sauce Shop (Shimane Prefecture) / Yagisawa Shoten (Iwate Prefecture) / Yamakawa Brewery (Gifu Prefecture) / Yamaroku Soy Sauce (Kagawa Prefecture) / Yamashin Brewery (Aichi Prefecture) / Yugeta Soy Sauce (Saitama Prefecture) / Yoshinaga Brewery (Kagoshima Prefecture) / Yoshimura Brewery (Kagoshima Prefecture)