The company was founded in 1820. For almost 200 years, Kita Shuzo has been brewing sake in this area, which is rich in mellow underground water. The name of this mild-flavored sake is "Kirakucho. The name of this mild-flavored sake is "Kiraku-cho," which symbolizes joy, fun, and long life. The brewer of this sake, which symbolizes happiness, is the ninth generation, Mayuko Kita, who was born and raised here.

The middle of three siblings, he decided to take over the brewery when he was in junior high school. When he entered the brewery, his face would change and he would face the sake. It was like a solemn ritual. I wanted to preserve this environment, and I felt that I had to leave it behind. He studied economics at university and gained experience in brewing and sake wholesale companies. All of this was done to preserve the Kita Brewery for future generations as a brewery owner.

I joined the family business in 2015. At the time, the toji was still coming in and the brewers would stay overnight for six months to make sake. I also worked as a kurabito, making sake in the winter and doing sales in the summer. I studied sake brewing before becoming a brewer, but sake brewing became a bigger and bigger part of my job, and four years ago I started working as a toji as well.

At the time, there were only two female toji in Shiga Prefecture, so I received comments like, 'Make sake that is feminine,' or 'Make sake that caters to young women. I was very grateful for that, but at the same time, I wondered what "feminine" meant. There were times when I was torn between everyone's expectations and the sake I wanted to make," she recalls.

In inheriting the Kirakucho sake, he struggled with what should be preserved and what new elements should be added, and realized that the answer was in the Kirakucho itself.
I call it "gracefulness," and it is based on the theme of the soft taste of "Kirakucho. Some people may perceive this as "femininity," but it is not a trait that suddenly appeared when I entered the brewery. However, this is not a characteristic that suddenly appeared when I joined the brewery. Nothing has changed. I just started to express that," he says.
The taste of "Kirakucho" is unique to Mayuko, and is created by accumulating experience year by year. In the same way, her eight predecessors must have continued their search here. Mayuko is an extension of that 200-year history.

The label with an illustration of a woman in silver with pink lines is eye-catching. It is a sake called "Kirakucho first" planned by Mayuko. The theme is "your first encounter with sake. The taste is light, like cotton candy," she said. The design of the label also expresses this atmosphere.

This year, they also brewed "Kirakucho second. ［This sake was brewed with two new challenges: white malted rice, which Kita Shuzo had never used before, and Shiga Prefecture's original yeast. Kirakucho's sake may be a little too authentic and difficult to approach for first-timers," he said. That's why we made the first sake easy for newcomers to drink, and made it so that they can taste the goodness of Kirakucho. If you enjoy the taste of first and second sake, I hope you will try the other Kiraku-cho sake as well.

It is a sake for people who drink Kirakucho for the first time" and "a sake that incorporates two new things. Mayuko felt more empowered if there were some restrictions. As she had done in the past, she could have chosen to have a toji (master brewer) come in and manage the Kita family as the brewery's head brewer.

However, Mayuko insisted on preserving "Kirakucho" herself while preserving the traditional way of doing things in this land where her ancestors have lived for a long time, and in a warehouse that has been used for a long time. I think it is meaningful to allow inconvenience. Of course, there are things that can be changed.

The old way of brewing sake, where people stayed overnight for six months, does not fit the modern age. It is not a bad idea to stop using this old, spacious warehouse and build a compact warehouse to brew sake for all four seasons. But that is not the Kita Brewery I wanted to take over. There must be a meaning for me in brewing "Kirakucho" in this place where holiness dwells," he says. Anyway, I will continue here. His strong determination is unwavering because the sight of the sacred sake brewing process that he saw as a child is still burned into his eyes.

■ Shiga Prefecture
［Koizumi [0748-23-2666] 228-5 Aobacho, Higashiomi-shi, Shiga
［Shigakuma Shoten] 0748-23-3028/5-7, Fudanotsuji 1-chome, Higashiomi-shi, Shiga Prefecture
[Omasuya] 0748-27-0014 / 447 Yamagamicho, Higashiomi City, Shiga Prefecture

■ Kyoto Prefecture
［Takama Sake Shop] 075-721-7210/2 Kamigamo Kurokatsu-cho, Kita-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto
［Meishukan Takimoto] 075-341-9111 / Rokujo-dori, Takakura-higashiiru, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto
［Nishimura Sake Shop] 075-781-3049/3 Kubota-cho, Kitashirakawa, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto