Izumibashi: Kanagawa's rice field-to-bottle brewery

"Keep an eye out for the dragonfly label - it's one worth remembering", says Kylie Clark, Japan specialist/ regenerative tourism consultant/ PR & Marketing expert/ Sake Sommelier.

On our latest Japan research trip, Japan-san and Kylie had the pleasure of joining a behind the scenes at Izumibashi Sake Brewery in Kanagawa with seventh-generation brewer Haruna Hashiba and Sake Educator Chris Hughes (sakenotabibito).

Kylie was kind enough to provide the following review of her experience:

"Only a small number of breweries in Japan grow their own rice. At Izumibashi, everything begins in the surrounding rice fields before the crop is harvested, polished in-house, transformed into koji, brewed into sake, and eventually poured into your glass. It really is a true rice field-to-bottle brewery.

The dragonfly on the label is more than just a logo. Dragonflies thrive only where water and the surrounding environment are healthy, making them a symbol of the thriving ecosystem that produces exceptional rice - and, ultimately, exceptional sake."

Kylie & Chris @ Izumibashi Brewery

This trade exclusive developed by Kanagawa DMO as part of their Premium Collection, is much more than a brewery visit. You'll also get a tour of the brewery, the surrounding rice field and a tasting led by Chris. You can also continue the sake "sesh" in Izumibashi's onsite izakaya, where you can enjoy their sake paired with seasonal dishes designed to bring out its character.

Kylie's review continues:

"It was a rare opportunity to see every step of the journey in one place - from the rice paddies to the polishing machines, the brewery, and finally, the finished sake in the glass. Experiences like this give you an even greater appreciation for the hard work and craftsmanship behind every bottle."

Planning your visit

This is one of the few high quality sake brewery tours accessible from Tokyo. It's just 50 minutes on the Odakyu line from Shinjuku to Ebina station, and then a 20 minute walk or 5 mins in taxi to the brewery. It's ideal for anyone heading onto Hakone (with an extra pep in their step), as they can hop on to the Odakyu Romance car to get to Hakone- Yumoto in 50 minutes. For those able to travel by car, you have all the options in the world (well, at least in Tokyo and Kanagawa) with the journey being under an hour from Tokyo, Yokohama and Kamakura.

Click here to get straight to the tariff info. Feel free to peruse our product library for other experiences available elsewhere in Kanagawa prefecture.

For more insights from the frontier of Japan travel and culture from Kylie, please be sure to follow @japan_kylie on instagram.