Fujioka Shuzo is a boutique brewery with a remarkable story of revival. They are once a large-scale producer, the company then nearly went bankrupt due to a shrinking market, uniform sake styles and the loss of their Toji (head brewer). However, in the early 2000s, they reinvented themselves by shifting to limited-run, exceptional craft sake. Instead of scaling up to meet demand, they chose to remain small, focused on their craft and deeply rooted in Kyoto's Fushimi district.
Today, visitors are welcomed to the brewery by a traditional cedar ball (sugidama) and a peaceful water feature. It is famous for their Sookuu (蒼空) sake brand which means the blue sky.
Here lies a little bar called the "Bar En", an intimate tasting room featuring a 6 seats low bar facing the brewing area and a cozy 4 seats tatami table. Surrounded by rough-hewn wood and vintage brewing gear, it is an easy place to lose track of time.
We grabbed a seat at the Bar En and kicked off our tasting with their standout & vibrant nama sake (unpasteurized sake) - served fresh from the tanks just as local sake was traditionally enjoyed alongside a few pasteurized options. Under the guidance of knowledgeable staff, you can simply sample a flight to learn about various rice types and brewing methods too.
From regular to super premium sake, all you can choose from clear (pasteurised) or cloudy (unpasteurized) types. There are also the food menu for pairing with the sake like tofu marinated with miso, Japanese pickles, roast duck, sake lees raisin butter with cracker and cream cheese with Shuto (fermented bonito guts). Little sweet & spicy snacks like fried small fish, scallop and burdock roots are available for order as well. There are something sweet like sake lees ice cream and amazake for someone who loves sweet treats.
We tried both cloudy and clear for no.6 - Junmai-daiginjo Aiyama.
Cloudy for no.7 - Junmai-daiginjo Yamada-nishiki.
Cloudy only for both no.3 - Junmai-ginjo Yamada-nishiki & no.4 - Junmai-ginjo Yamada-bo.
No.2 for both cloudy & clear - Special Junmai Tankan-wataribune.
And the cloudy for no.1 - Junmai Miyama-nishiki. It was the perfect way to find out our favourites before stocking up on bottles to take back to the hotel. Glasses here are reasonably priced at 690yen and they even serve a remarkably unique frozen sake for 750yen that you won't want to miss.
The frozen sake for 750yen.
The
nama sake is notoriously fragile (need to be keep refrigerated all the time), so its true magic is best experienced right here in the heart of Fushimi.
ごちそうさまでした. Thank you for brewing & create such delicate craft sake! It is truly a hidden gem in Fushimi sake district. People who does not like sake will instantly falls in love with their unpasteurized (
nama) sake too. If you are visiting the Fushimi area, please make a stop here in Fujioka Shuzo. It will definitely never disappoints you.
Fujioka Shuzo / Sakagura Bar En
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