A 250-year project to create a village of cherry trees as far as the eye can see

Let’s fill our hometown with 99,000 cherry trees and leave them to our children. An incredibly grand project is currently underway in Iwaki City. The project is called the ” Iwaki Mambonzakura Project. We visited the stage of the project, which has attracted the participation of world-renowned artists.

The “Iwaki Manbonzakura Project” was launched two months after the Great East Japan Earthquake, with the sincere wishes of the people of Iwaki gathered together. Mr. Tadashige Shiga plays a central role in the project. In the book “The Giant Who Walks in the Sky” by Kawauchi Ario, who won the Ken Kaiko Nonfiction Prize this year, he appears as “Iwaki’s amazing old man.

The place we were aiming for was on a hill overlooking rice paddies. The wooden corridor, 160 meters long, stretches upward like a dragon from there. The sign at the entrance read “Iwaki Corridor Art Museum. Hidetoshi Nakata, who was looking at the exhibits on the wall, stopped in front of a photo.
Is this another of Mr. Tsai’s works?” Mr. Shiga nodded yes.
It is a work called “Gift from Iwaki,” which has been exhibited around the world. For every exhibition, we, the Iwaki team, go there to help assemble it. Mr. Tsai may just want to play along, though.
With a mischievous smile, Mr. Shiga told us how he and his ally, Cai Guo-Qiang, created the museum here.

Cai Guo-Qiang is a contemporary artist from Fujian, China. He describes Iwaki as his second hometown, and is currently based in New York and continues his creative activities around the world. Thirty years ago. As a student at Tsukuba University and a fledgling artist, Cai had a chance to hold a solo exhibition at an art gallery in Iwaki. At that time, Mr. Shiga purchased a painting, and the two became friends. Their friendship continued even after Ms. Tsai left for the world.
When the earthquake struck seven years ago, Mr. Tsai immediately rushed to Iwaki. Hearing about the “10,000 Cherry Blossoms Project,” he suggested that we create an art museum

Painting the Cherry Blossom Landscape of the Future.

Before the earthquake, the original trees had to be cut down to plant cherry trees. Before the earthquake, thinned wood sold for 50,000-60,000 yen per hectare, but after the earthquake, the price collapsed. When I told them that we were in the red, they said, “Then let’s build with the timber. I told them it would be easy to maintain, so we decided on a corridor style.
Based on Mr. Tsai’s sketches, a total of 400 volunteers worked for six months to construct the building. Currently, four of Tsai’s works are on display on the site, surrounded by an outdoor stage, tree house, swings, and other structures built by Shiga and other volunteers. A café space, library, and other facilities are currently under construction.

They plant 400 to 500 cherry trees a year, and have reached a total of 4,000 trees to date. At this rate, it will take about 200 to 250 years to reach the goal, Shiga says with a laugh.
In the future,” he says with a laugh. In the future, I would like to fill the rice paddies in front of us with cherry trees.
Looking where Shiga-san is pointing, Nakata-san says, “It’s a great view.
It would be interesting to have a museum that is constantly evolving, and since so many people have put so much thought into this place, why don’t we come up with a system to make it known to even more people?”
The rice fields are beautiful here, so why not hold a harvest festival in the fall?
Their strategy meeting around the hearth continued until the sun went down.

Reference links

Iwaki Corridor Museum of Art
7 Sosaku, Taira Nakagamiyaji, Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture

Iwaki Manbonsakura Project
https://www.mansaku99.com/home

Iwaki Manbonzakura info (X: former twitter)
https://twitter.com/99000_sakura

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Adatara-yama’s Great Nature Nurtures High-Quality Fukushima Beef

In recent years, Fukushima beef has gained a reputation for its high quality. In Otama Village at the foot of Mt. Adatara, there is a man known as the driving force behind this trend. Otama Village, at the foot of Mt. Hironao Suzuki, who has won numerous awards at cattle fairs and is known as one of the leading producers in the prefecture, says, “Water, air, and high-quality rice straw are the conditions for raising delicious cows.

Mt. Adatara, which was described as “the real sky” in Kotaro Takamura’s “Chieko Sho” (Chieko’s Book of Poems). The gently sloping ridgeline landed at the end of the mountain, where a countryside spread out. Hironao Suzuki and his wife run a livestock business in a corner of the rice paddies. Hidetoshi Nakata was invited into the guest room of Mr. Suzuki’s house, looked at the bundles of ears of rice on the wall, and asked, “What is so special about these rice straws? Does this straw have any special meaning?” It is 50 years’ worth of rice ears that Mr. Suzuki has harvested since he started farming at the age of 20. It was about the same time I started raising cattle, so it’s been half a century.”

There are two types of beef cattle farmers: breeding farmers, who raise calves until they are about 9 to 10 months old, and fattening farmers, who raise them for about 20 months. Mr. Suzuki is a fattening farmer of the latter type and is known as a representative producer in Fukushima Prefecture. 2017, he won the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries Award at the Beef Cattle Carcass Kyoreikai organized by the National Beef Cattle Promotion Fund Association. In the same year, he also won the highest honorary award at the 19th Zenno-Nohshi Eda Nikkyo Reikai, as well as numerous other awards.
The aroma is good, and the fat is not too greasy, which is a characteristic of Fukushima beef,” said Mr. Suzuki, who is modest about his own achievements.
Although Mr. Suzuki is modest about his own achievements, he is proud to say that the quality of the beef he has raised with great care is something he can boast of to the world.

Taking on the Challenge of Spreading Wagyu Beef Overseas

It is often said that bloodlines determine the breed of cattle,” Mr. Suzuki replied immediately to Mr. Nakata’s question, “but how do you bring about the unique characteristics common to the Fukushima region?
Originally, each farmer devised his own feed, but because of this, there was a large variation in meat quality. Then, after listening to everyone’s opinions, we standardized the feed. As a result, we were able to improve the quality of the entire region.”
He continues, “Rice straw is one of the most important ingredients in the feed. If you compare it to a human meal, rice straw is the rice, and formula feed is the side dish. No matter how sumptuous the side dish is, it is important to eat a good staple food. The hardness of rice straw varies depending on the variety, but I believe that Koshihikari is the most suitable for cattle ruminating.

While the reputation of Fukushima beef has been growing in recent years, the price of moto-ushi, which could be purchased for 500,000 yen before the earthquake, has skyrocketed to nearly double that. Mr. Suzuki’s sense of crisis was heightened by the fact that farmers are closing their businesses one after another due to the aging of the population. However, when asked how he is responding to the trend toward trade liberalization, with the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) coming into effect at the end of last year and the Japan-Europe EPA (Economic Partnership Agreement) in February, he looks forward, saying that as a producer he has no choice but to continue producing good cattle.
He replied, “If cheap beef from other countries enters the market, the competition will become even tougher. But I am sure that there will be consumers who will choose good quality and delicious meat.
Nodding his head in agreement, Mr. Nakata encourages producers to see trade liberalization not only as a challenge but also as an opportunity.
When I go abroad, I am asked about Wagyu beef by many people. That’s how interested they are in Japanese beef. This is an opportunity to expand our sales channels overseas, and I think we should go out there more and more.
I don’t think I will be able to retire anytime soon. Mr. Suzuki’s smile is radiant.

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Reviving Kawamata Silk through Innovation

Kawamata Town in Fukushima Prefecture, a silk textile production center with a long history, is now the focus of international attention . The company has continued to innovate Kawamata silk.

When it comes to silk fabrics in Tohoku, we often hear the names of Sendaihira and Yonezawaori, but there is also a silk production area in Fukushima Prefecture, isn’t there?
Hidetoshi Nakata walks through the factory and observes the work being done. Next to him, Saito Eita, managing director of Saiei Orimono, explained that at a time when raw silk was extremely expensive, Kawamata developed the “Karume Habutae” technique, in which a small amount of yarn is used to produce a high value.
Today, there are about 20 textile companies in Kawamata. Kawamata has inherited the production of this thin, high-quality silk.
In the textile industry in Europe and the United States, “kawamata” is also used to refer to light-weight habutae,” says Mr. Saito, whose grandfather founded the company.
It was 17 years ago that Mr. Saito joined the company founded by his grandfather. At the time, the company’s performance was at rock bottom,” he recalls.

We had a limited number of business partners and were highly dependent on one company. If any of our clients were to suffer a slump in performance, we were in danger of collapsing together. We wanted to broaden our base, so we actively participated in exhibitions and business meetings, and began developing sales channels not only in the U.S. but also in Europe.
At the same time, the company began to develop a flagship product that would become its strength. The concept they arrived at was “the world’s thinnest and lightest yarn-dyed silk fabric. The reason for this was to pinpoint the characteristics of Kawamata silk and to fuse them with the yarn-dyed textile technology in which Saiei Orimono excels.

Attitude toward manufacturing

First, they made a prototype using the thinnest raw silk available in the market, but the response from their customers was weak. Then, they reexamined the raw material of raw silk. Normally, silkworms molt four times to form cocoons, but the company developed an ultrafine thread about one-sixth the thickness of a human hair by using the thread of the “sanmin-san” silkworm, which molted only three times. The threads are so delicate that if they were not taut, they could not be felt even when squeezed with the tip of a finger. It took more than two years of trial-and-error to improve the weaving machine to mass-produce the yarn.

It was exactly one year after the Great East Japan Earthquake that the product, named “Fairy Feathers,” went on sale to the general public. When the product was featured on TV, the e-mail system was flooded with inquiries. Telephone inquiries amounted to two files in one day. In the same year, the company won the Monodzukuri Nippon Grand Award and the Good Design Award. Mr. Saito says he was overjoyed when his company’s products appeared on store shelves and were adopted one after another by famous European brands. In the future, he is eager to develop a 100% silk material that is washable at home, wrinkle-resistant, and stretchable.

While praising this new approach to manufacturing, Mr. Nakata hopes that the culture of kimono will be preserved.
We once held an event with a dress code of yuzen for women and hakama for men, and it was very well received by the participants. Many people started buying kimonos as a result of participating in this event, and I have started buying one a year myself. It is important to create opportunities as well as to make things. I think it will be important in the future to have a good balance of these activities in the production areas.

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Fukushima’s proud confectionery that will not fade away even 100 years from now

Melting in the mouth with a pleasant aftertaste of gentle flavor. A fresh caramel from Fukushima swept the Salon du Chocolat, one of the world’s largest chocolate festivals, held in Paris.
The product was developed by MukaiyamaSeisakusho, an electronic parts manufacturer based in Otama-mura, Fukushima Prefecture. We visited the birthplace of the “Miracle Caramel,” which overcame the disaster and harmful rumors.

Hidetoshi Nakata is known as a confectionery lover and has been involved in the development and supervision of numerous products. President Kinya Oda smiled when he heard that Mr. Nakata had known about Mukoyama Seisakusho for some time.
The company’s main business is the machining of precision equipment parts. Since its founding, the company has weathered many waves of boom and bust, but in 2008, it lost 80% of its business due to the Lehman Shock. We have to do something on our own. …… After much thought, the idea came to him to start a sweets business, making use of the commercial gas stove in the hot water supply room.

The president had always loved cooking and was interested in the food business. He persuaded employees who were opposed to the idea and worked with a female employee who was a certified nutritionist to create recipes from scratch. She was not a professional at baking sweets. Instead, he measured temperature, time, weight, and other detailed data. With the help of a calculator, they spent a year developing a recipe for raw caramel.
Then, they began to develop a sales network, groping in the dark. First, they began selling at highway service areas on weekends. Then he was approached about direct sales. Eventually, they were invited to participate in department store events, and their products became popular in Tokyo as well. Finally, a major airline company wanted to use them as tea snacks in the first class of their international flights.

Decision to make pastries in France

March 1, 2011. The first plane carrying Mukaiyama Seisakusho’s dream took off. However, the situation changed drastically when the Great East Japan Earthquake struck 10 days later. Logistics was paralyzed and shipments of dairy products from the prefecture were restricted.
In a desperate move, the company decided to procure raw materials from all over Japan. Two months after the disaster, sales resumed at a department store in Tokyo.
People’s reactions were not all warm. He had to endure unjustified rumors and heartbreaking rhetoric for days on end. The deficit was ballooning, and the prospect of “withdrawal” became more realistic by the day. In fact, he reveals that the real purpose of his participation in the “Salon du Chocolat” was to give himself a reason to give up.

He said, “I believed in myself, and my employees followed me. Even if I quit, I wanted to be proud that I had done everything I could.
Contrary to expectations, however, Mukaiyama Seisakusho was greeted with thunderous applause from the French people.
France is the place that gave me back my confidence. I can only be thankful.”
As the results in Paris spread to Japan, sales gradually recovered. In recent years, the company’s performance has been steadily increasing.

When asked by Mr. Nakata, “Did expanding the scope of material procurement nationwide result in the opening of new possibilities? While acknowledging that this is one aspect of the company’s business, President Oda also spoke of his strong desire to preserve the taste of Fukushima.
Some of the products were difficult to produce due to the earthquake, but we have been able to ensure their safety, and some have resumed production, while others have been newly created. We will revive all Fukushima-made sweets with them. That is the wish of all our employees.

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Only 20% of the rice harvest can be called Ten-ei rice

Ten-ei-mura, Iwase-gun, in the central part of Fukushima Prefecture, is known as a rice-growing area. Ten years ago, a group of volunteer rice farmers got together to form the Ten-ei Rice Cultivation Study Group. Aiming to improve the taste and quality of rice, they have been working to cultivate rice using special cultivation and organic cultivation. The group boasts a record of being the only one in Japan to win the gold medal for nine consecutive years at the “International Rice and Taste Analysis Competition*,” a competition for rice taste.
(*) This is a taste evaluation contest for new rice sponsored by the Association of Rice and Taste Analysts, which has been held since 2000. Since the 10th contest, it has become an international competition and is highly acclaimed both in Japan and abroad.

In early autumn, Hidetoshi Nakata visited Ten-ei Village, which was in the midst of its harvest season. Yoshio Madarame, chairman of the Ten-ei Rice Cultivation Research Association, took him on a tour of the village’s prized rice fields. Is this Koshihikari rice? What is the yield? We continue our questioning, hearing that the market price in this area is 8 to 10 bales per hectare. Mr. Nakata smiled at Mr. Ikarume, who rolled his eyes and said, “You know a lot about rice. I’ve always loved rice, and I’ve learned so much about it that I’m now a “rice listener. The members of the study group’s members’ voices instantly softened the mood of the room. The Ten-ei Rice Cultivation Study Group was established in 2008. Mr. Ikarame reveals that the deregulation of rice distribution was the initial impetus for the group’s establishment.

Since then, the group has been engaged in special cultivation and organic rice cultivation through trial and error. Among their signature rice products, “Kampo Environmental Farming Ten-ei Rice” uses Kampo as an organic fertilizer and paper mulch rice transplanters as a weed control measure. Mr. Ikarume proudly states, “We do not use any pesticides, chemical fertilizers, or herbicides, and we take our time and care to cultivate our rice. Growing rice without pesticides requires more than twice as much work. The harvest is only about 60% of what it used to be. Even so, when you eat the rice, the difference is obvious. I believe it is worth the effort.

Representing the rice farmers of Fukushima, the team won the gold award for the first time in two years.

On the other hand, in order for the value of the rice to be widely recognized, it is necessary to have it evaluated by a third party. With this in mind, the research group has continued to enter its rice in the world’s largest rice competition, the International Rice Evaluation and Taste Analysis Competition. The result was a gold medal for the ninth consecutive year. This record is the reason why Ten-ei rice is known as the best rice in the world.

After the Great East Japan Earthquake, he suffered from harmful rumors and almost gave up farming. Still, they did everything they could to decontaminate the soil using zeolite and purify the water. Their efforts bore fruit, and the rice harvested in the fall was undetectable for radioactive materials. The rice harvested in the fall was found to be radiation-free, extending the record of consecutive gold medals at the contest. However, last year, when the gold medal was on the line for the 10th consecutive year, the lack of sunshine due to the long rains had an adverse effect on the rice. The team fell just short of the gold medal and received the Special Excellence Award.

Although the record of consecutive years has been broken, this year they hope to win the Gold Award for the 10th time no matter what it takes. The people of Ten-ei Village are cheering for the people of Fukushima Prefecture to improve the image of their agricultural products. Mr. Nakata is also focusing on ideas to support the people of Ten-ei Village, who are looking forward to the future.
If we win the 10th gold medal, why don’t we change the packaging to a design with stars in a row?
The results of the competition will be announced at the end of November. The date of the contest will be announced at the end of November, and the time is getting closer every second.

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Original and Mysterious, Approaching the Mystery of the Aizu Sazae-do

The “Entsu Sansodo-Hall ” (designated as a National Important Cultural Property by the Japanese government) stands on a hillside in the middle of Mt. It is a hall of wooden architecture with a height of 16.5 m and a hexagonal three-layer structure that is familiar by the name of Aizu Sazae-do. In 1796, Shoso-ji Temple, which once stood at this location, built this hall as a Kannon Hall enshrining the 33 Kannon of the Saigoku Region. It is said that if one made a round of the temple, it was believed to be as beneficial as a pilgrimage to the western part of Japan.
The 33 sacred sites of the Kannon faith are scattered throughout the Kinki region and Gifu Prefecture. It is said to be the oldest pilgrimage in Japan, and it is believed that if one makes a pilgrimage to the 33 sacred sites of the Kannon in the western part of Japan, all sins committed in this life will be extinguished and he or she will be reborn in paradise.

Hidetoshi Nakata first visited Aizu Sazae-do about six years ago. He recalls that the unique architectural style and the timeless atmosphere left a strong impression on him.
The fact that you can see all parts of the building in one-way traffic is once again an amazing structure,” he said.
Masanori Iimori, the owner of Aizu Sazaedo, nods in agreement with Nakata’s words and explains how it came to be.

There are many Buddhist temples called “sazayedo,” and it is said that the first one was Rokanji Temple in Honjo-Gotsume, Edo (present-day Oshima, Koto-ku, Tokyo), in 1728. Since then, they were built mainly in the Kanto and northern areas during the late Edo period, but only a few of them are said to still exist. The hall is characterized by a spiral passageway that circles clockwise three times.
However, the architectural style of Aizu Sazae-do is very different from the others. The hexagonal exterior is unique, but what is most unusual is the double-helix passageway, which allows visitors going up and down the aisle to pass each other without passing each other. When Mr. Nakata was told that Aizu Sazaedo is the only building in Japan to use a double-helix structure, he raised a question.

Where did he get the idea for the structure of the Sazaedo?

Mr. Iimori, who prefaced his answer by saying that he did not know the exact source, shared two hypotheses.
For generations, the Iimori family has believed that the monk Ikudo, who invented the Aizu Sazaedo, was inspired by a dream he had of a double koyori. On the other hand, there is a theory that the double spiral staircase at Chambord Castle in France, which Leonardo da Vinci is said to have been involved in designing, was the inspiration.
The “Kyoho 5 (1720) ban on Western books was lifted, and the sketches of Chambord Castle that came to the Akita clan may have been seen by the monk Ikudo. Some experts have speculated that this is so.

After ascending the passageway in a rightward direction and crossing the drum bridge at the top, the flow of visitors turns to the left. When you pass through the exit, before you know it, you are behind the building. Mr. Iimori laughs as he observes visitors curiously twisting their necks, saying, “At first, everyone is puzzled. In the Edo period (1603-1867), when the entire area of Mt. Iimori was within the precincts of Shomune-ji Temple, Iimori was not only a place for people to rest and relax, but also an object of religious worship.
Iimoriyama is often associated with the Boshin War at the end of the Edo period (1603-1868), but in fact, this site is also the remains of a posteriori burial mound built in the 4th century.
As the conversation turned to history, Mr. Nakata’s eyes lit up when he heard that there is also a wonderful historical site called Sakudari Kannon in the neighboring town of Aizu Misato. He does not seem to flinch when told that access is a bit inconvenient.
I often find more unexpected discoveries in places that are less accessible because I don’t usually go there,” he says. After all, the best part of traveling is discovering new things.

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Seeking the finest peaches nurtured by the people and nature of Fukushima

Fukushima Prefecture is known as one of the nation’s leading fruit kingdoms. Among the fruits of Fukushima Prefecture, peaches are probably the most representative of the prefecture. Fukushima City and Date City are famous for peach production, but this time, Hidetoshi Nakata went to Koorimachi, Date County. The town’s peaches have been selected as a gift to the Imperial Household for 25 consecutive years.

Peach fields stretch along the Abukuma River. At the farm of Mr. Masahiro Minami, located in the corner commonly called “Peach Road,” peaches such as “Tamaki” and “Hikawa Hakuho,” which bear fruit early in June and early July, were ready for harvesting.
Hidetoshi Nakata, who has visited Fukushima many times, was surprised to learn that Fukushima ranks second in Japan in terms of peach harvest and shipment (according to the statistics released on January 23, 2008 by the Statistics Department, Minister’s Secretariat, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries).
Why has peach cultivation flourished so much?”
After World War II, as sericulture declined, many farmers switched to fruit cultivation. Mr. Minami explains the historical background of peach cultivation, saying that the rich soil and basin climate of the Abukuma River basin were particularly suited to peach cultivation.
My family has been growing peaches since my grandfather’s generation, which is now 60 years ago.
Minami-san’s farm grows about 500 peach trees of 16 varieties, and a variety of peaches are harvested from the end of June to September, but the main variety is “AKATSUKI,” a brand name representing Fukushima.

The origin of the name “Akatsuki,” a brand-name peach, comes from a shrine

The “Akatsuki” variety, named after the “Shinobu Sanzan Akatsuki Mairi” festival held at the Shinobuyama Haguro Shrine in Fukushima City, was registered as a variety in 1979, and is usually harvested from early to mid-August (depending on the weather. It is a peach that is usually harvested from early to mid-August (this year, it is expected to be from the end of July to early August). Because it was a small-bodied variety, it was not widely grown throughout Japan. The peaches were not widely grown in Japan because they were small in size, but growers in Fukushima took notice of their flavor and devised a cultivation method to increase the size of the fruit, resulting in the development of a superb brand peach with dense, sweet flesh.
From the growers’ point of view, it is also an easy peach to cultivate. The fruit is plump and abundant and looks good, making it a popular variety for gift-giving,” says Mr. Minami.
Peaches produced in Kuori have been selected as imperial gifts for 25 consecutive years. Only “Akatsuki” peaches, which are selected for their sugar content, firmness, size, and coloring, are presented to the Imperial Household. The best peaches are gathered from each farm, and the best peaches are selected from among them.
Mr. Nakata leaned forward as he listened to the story.
How many peaches of the same grade as the Dedicated Peach are harvested at your farm?
About 300 peaches, or 2 to 3% of the harvest,” Mr. Minami said.
Mr. Minami said, “About 300 peaches, which is 2 to 3% of our harvest. Now I am enjoying growing peaches. He spoke to us in a straightforward manner about his life after the earthquake.

Recovery from the Earthquake

Due to harmful rumors about the nuclear power plant accident, sales and prices of peaches in the prefecture dropped sharply. They were so determined to make sure that people could eat their carefully grown peaches with peace of mind that they thoroughly decontaminated each and every peach tree. They continued to grow peaches silently, replanting trees weakened by the decontamination process. Now, seven years after the earthquake, sales prices have recovered to the previous level. Exports to Asia and other overseas markets have also increased, which has been encouraging, according to Minami. We are also receiving positive feedback on our efforts to ensure food safety and security,” says Minami. Whenever we receive comments about how delicious our products are, we feel as if we have been rewarded.
Nakata-san left the farm with a smile on his face as he told Minami-san with a shy smile that he was looking forward to eating “AKATSUKI”.

The post Peach Farmer – Mr. Yukihiro Minami, a “Superb Peach” Nurtured by the People and Nature of Fukushima / Kuori Town, Fukushima Prefecture first appeared on NIHONMONO.

Located in Soma City, Fukushima Prefecture, a prosperous castle town, is Yamagataya Shoten, a small soy sauce and miso brewery that has been in business for about 150 years. Founded in 1863, the company has been in business under the name “Yamabun. The fifth-generation owner, Kazuo Watanabe, is the man behind this long-established business, which has been loved under the name “Yamabun. In the six years since he became the owner, he has won the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries Award, the highest award at the National Soy Sauce Competition, which has been held since 1973, four times. The name is spreading throughout the country.

Nationally Recognized Soy Sauce from the Fukushima Method

The wooden house has a time-honored charm. The storefront boasts an array of products, including shoyu, miso, koji (malted rice), amazake (sweet sake), and sagohachi (koji pickles). Hidetoshi Nakata turned his gaze toward the back of the store, following the aroma of the miso.
You also sell miso by weight,” Nakata said.
Kazuo Watanabe, the owner of the store, nodded smilingly and offered him a sample. We start with a taste of their signature product, Yamabun Honjozo Tokusen Soy Sauce. The deep, mellow umami and appetizingly savory flavor spreads in the mouth.

The process of making shoyu begins with the preparation of koji (malted rice) from soybeans and wheat. The malted rice is then used to brew the moromi, which is aged for six months and pressed to make kiage, or raw soy sauce, a labor-intensive and costly process.
In an effort to ease the burden on breweries, Fukushima Prefecture has decided to establish an integrated production system at its kiage factory. The Fukushima method of centralizing the production of namaage, pioneered in Japan, has spread to other parts of the country. Today, half of all shoyu sold on the market is made using this method.
There are various types of namaage, such as round soybeans and dark soybeans, and Fukushima Prefecture offers several types of namaage for each type. By combining them, it is possible to create a brewery’s own unique flavor.

Polished secret techniques enhance the flavor.

After the soy sauce is cooked, each brewery performs a fire-working process, which is said to be the most important step in bringing out the best of the shoyu. Mr. Watanabe takes us on a tour of the factory, explaining the ingenuity of each brewery.
The secret of adding “kaeshi” has been passed down from generation to generation at Yamagataya. The mirin (sweet sake) is boiled down, sugar and shoyu are added, and the mixture is left to simmer for 10 days before adding the kaeshi, which is added just before the temperature reaches 80°C. “Some of the brewers I know also use kaeshi,” says Watanabe. This is a unique technique that even the brewers I know have never heard of, but it adds depth of flavor and aroma to the finished product,” he says.
The process of heating the soy sauce over a period of time and then raising the temperature allows the higa, or aromatic flavor, to become more pronounced and to persist.
What kind of dishes does this shoyu go well with?
Mr. Watanabe thinks for a moment before answering, “Since it’s a shoyu from the sea, it goes well with fish,” he says. He recommends it for boiled fish such as flounder.
The color, shine, and taste are so good, and it doesn’t fall apart easily, that some professionals, including inns and Japanese restaurants, say they can’t use any other soy sauce,” he says.
In recent years, orders from all over Japan have been increasing due to the good results of the product at the competition. Mr. Watanabe’s smile is as happy as ever that the local people are so pleased with his product.
In the old days, every castle town had a brewery. In the old days, every castle town had its own brewery, and Soma used to be lined with many of them, but now it is the only one. I would like to pass on the castle town of Soma to the next generation through the taste of my hometown and its food culture of shoyu and miso.

The post Yamagataya Shoten, a soy sauce and miso warehouse that has been in business for about 150 years / Soma City, Fukushima Prefecture first appeared on NIHONMONO.

Discoveries that can only be made locally are the best part of traveling.

Twelve years ago, at the age of 29, Hidetoshi Nakata retired from active soccer. After visiting more than 90 countries, he realized that although he was Japanese, he did not know much about Japan, and in 2009 he began a journey that took him to all 47 prefectures of Japan. After spending about 7 years visiting all of Japan, he has been traveling around the country to promote and develop Japanese culture, which has enough charm but is not in the spotlight. He has made countless trips to Fukushima, one of the most famous sake-producing regions in Japan.

There are three cultural zones, Hamadori, Nakadori, and Aizu, each of which has its own rich regional culture. Fukushima Prefecture is the third largest prefecture in Japan in terms of land area and has formed a diverse culture with its richly varied climate, and every time I visit, I make new discoveries. Nakata has introduced many people to the charms of traditional crafts and sake in various regions of Japan. This year, ” Oku-Aizu Kinzan Natural Carbonated Water ” is being used as the temperate water in the ” Craft Sake Week, ” a sake event he is organizing.

Kanayama-cho, Onuma-gun, is located in the western part of the Aizu region of Fukushima Prefecture, on the border with Niigata Prefecture. The water that springs from the town in the valley that embraces the Tadami River is soft and slightly carbonated, which is a very rare feature. It became so popular that it was exported to Europe during the Meiji period (1868-1912), but production was discontinued due to difficulties in transportation. However, the water, which had been carefully protected by local residents, has been successfully restored after about 100 years.

Rediscovering the charms of Fukushima, where diverse cultures thrive

The company that produces “Okuaizu Kanayama Natural Carbonated Water” is Harbeth Corporation, headquartered in Saitama Prefecture. President Tomonori Maeda heard about the reputation of the carbonated water in Kanayama from his customers, and upon visiting the area, he decided to commercialize the product. With the cooperation of the local community, he drilled a new well, set up a factory, and began selling the product in 2004.
Mr. Nakata first learned of the product seven or eight years ago. He recalls that he was strongly impressed by the fact that it was naturally carbonated water, which is rare in Japan.
Now, carbonated water is a common drink in Japan, but at that time, the culture of carbonated water was not as firmly rooted as it is today. I think we were the pioneers in naturally carbonated water.
The reputation of the product gradually spread, and it has been used in Japanese and French restaurants listed in the Michelin Guide. Despite being carbonated water, its fine and smooth texture makes it ideal as a soothing water. It accentuates the delicate flavor of sake.

Mr. Nakata was invited by President Maeda to visit the factory in Kanayama. When he heard that there is a carbonated hot spring nearby, he was intrigued. Next month, the Fukushima Rediscovery Tour will begin in earnest. He is eager to uncover the hidden charms of Fukushima.
I believe that although Fukushima is blessed with wonderful ingredients such as food, sake, and traditional crafts, there are many things that even the residents of Fukushima Prefecture are unaware of. I would also like to dig up fresh information on things that are commonplace to the locals, but which may become new discoveries depending on the angle from which you look at them.

The post Oku-Aizu Kanayama “Natural carbonated water” / Kanayama Town, Fukushima Prefecture first appeared on NIHONMONO.