KYOTO: Fujioka Sake Brewery @ Fushimi
Fushimi in Kyoto is famous for Fushimi Inari Taisha, but did you know that Fushimi is famous for nihonshu (Japanese sake)? If you are a nishonshu lover and happen to be travelling around this area, do make time to visit Fushimi Sake District.
Here in Fushimi Sake District, you will find white-walled kura (traditional sake breweries) lining the streets, with cedar ball ornaments (sugidama) hanging above their entrances. Calm, quiet and pleasantly free from crowds. I really love the atmosphere here!
We wandered into our first sake brewery – Fujioka Sake Brewery, which is about 5 minutes’ walk from Fushimi Momoyama Station.
For full itinerary of our trip – READ: JAPAN TRIP 2025: 12D11N in Nagoya, Kyoto, Kanazawa, Toyama & Tokyo
Once you step inside, you will find a small bar area – Bar “En” , featuring a traditional low bar counter and low table with floor cushions on the tatami area. On the other side, there is a display of their sake range available for purchase, along with various merchandise.
We settled ourselves at Bar “En” and started with all the Sookuu 苍空 namazake and a few non nama varieties. We tasted our way through the selection to see which ones we liked best. All while getting our pocket ready for a few bottles to enjoy back at the hotel that evening.
Namazake is something we really can’t bring back to our home country, so whenever I am in Japan, I will hunt down some namazake. Forgot to mention, Sookuu is such a beautiful name. It means “blue sky” in English!
There was also a handy chart showing the profile of each sake they offer, ranging from light to rich as well as dry to sweet. That made it easier for us to understand and compare the different varieties,
Each glass was priced at ¥690 and their special frozen sake that was ¥750. They also had amazake, sake lees ice cream, miso tofu, pickles and other little bites that pair well with sake.
Frozen sake was interesting – its taste changes as it slowly melts. So you get to experience the sake evolving from the first sip to the last.
After our tasting session, we ended up with bottles of Junmai Miyama Nishiki (¥2,350) and Junmai Ginjo Yamadabo (¥3,500) for the night.
Fujioka Shuzo
Opens from 11.30am to 6pm
Closed on Wednesdays
