Watanabe Shuzoten

Watanabe Shuzoten, founded in 1868 (Meiji 1), is a brewery rooted in Nechi Valley, Itoigawa City, Niigata. It is attracting high attention from home and abroad as a pioneer of 'Domaine' (estate-owned land) style in Japan, consistently handling everything from rice cultivation to sake brewing by itself.
Under the belief that 'sake quality is determined by the rice field,' the brewers themselves nurture sake rice in the rich soil of Nechi Valley, introducing the concept of 'Vintage' (harvest year) to seal the climate of that year and the land's individuality into the sake. This thorough commitment creates sake expressing a unique terroir.
The major brands 'Nechi' and 'Nechi Otokoyama' coexist with a transparent taste and the powerfulness that makes one feel the inherent vitality of rice. Winning many gold medals in world liquor competitions, it is a brewery representing not only Niigata but also Japan in 'brewing the land,' and its challenge is expanding to the world.