Kyoto Sake Brewery Tour with Lunch

What to Expect

During the tour, we will spend time at the Gekkeikan Okura sake museum where a brief history of sake can be understood. Since they have been making sake since 1637, with a nearly 4 century-old process, our guests really see how things have been done for generations.

Beginning in the Fushimi district of Kyoto, your guide will take you through the streets of this stunning town to various traditional and modern sake breweries allowing our guests to get a sense of the area’s 400-year-old sake brewing tradition. Known for brewing some of the best sake in the world, Fushimi’s secret lies in the natural spring water of the area. Because of the water holding less magnesium and calcium than other parts of Japan or the world, the sake of the area reaches levels of purity and taste other areas could not easily replicate.

Brewing takes place in the cold months of the year after the rice crop has been harvested and as a result, the air around Fushimi is saturated with the smell of fermenting rice during this time of year. The neighborhood is a festive one that comes to life each day with sake bars and vendors selling the local sake to patrons.

Our guests will get a sense of the traditional brewing process which involves a combination of water, malt, yeast, and steamed rice. The different cut or variety of rice plays a big part in the distinction of the sake. If a grain of rice has less grain shaved off, it is more bitter. Generally, the more grain is shaved, the sweeter it will taste. The brewery shop carries around 80 varieties for you to purchase and take home.

We will have a chance to learn about all the ins and outs of the sake brewing process, but due to sanitation and brewing laws in Japan, we will not be able to see the actual active sake brewing areas. 

• 3 hour tour of Kyoto’s Fushimi district
• Visit a small and large sake brewery to get a sense of the differences of scale and try their sake and other products.
• Guided tour at the Gekkeikan Okura Sake Museum
• See how a brewery works and get a sense of what goes into production of the world’s best sake.
• Browse the shops at a local shopping arcade for souvenirs unique to the area.

Menu

• Gekkeikan Okura sake museum
• Several kinds of sake tastings
• Classic Japanese lunch in a restaurant

Schedule

• 10:45 - 11:00 am: Meet in front of SoftBank shop
• 11:00 am: Walk through the streets of this stunning Fushimi district to various traditional and modern sake breweries
• 12:00 pm: Guided tour at the Gekkeikan Okura sake museum
• 1:30 pm: Sample different kinds of sake
• 2:00 pm: Tour ends