NA Carefully Preserved Pour from the Shores of Lake Biwa
Take a single large pot, and slowly reduce fresh ginger by hand. The ginger syrup that emerges from this labour fills no more than five small bottles.
It is a process that quietly defies modern efficiency. And yet, Naminooto Shuzo in Otsu, Shiga, continues to uphold it as one of the silent points of pride in a brewery that has endured for more than 220 years. “PREMIUM GINGER YUZU” layers that syrup with yuzu juice from Kyushu, all brought together on a base of the brewery’s own sake.
Served Only in the Inner Rooms of a Ryotei
For a long time, this single cup never reached the open market.
Within the brewery’s grounds lies a ryotei named Yokaro, a 1932 building originally built as the eighth-generation master’s private residence. Its garden was designed by the renowned landscape artist Mirei Shigemori, and the haiku poet Kyoshi Takahama is said to have lodged here. The ryotei opens only during the summer months, when sake brewing pauses, and operates strictly by reservation.
Premium Ginger was, at first, served only within the walls of this ryotei. Alongside a course of charcoal-grilled eel, or a quiet dish of delicate Japanese fare, the yuzu acidity would cleanse the richness of the oil, and the warmth of ginger would settle the stomach. It was a drink designed to orchestrate the rhythm of the meal itself, something close to a hidden item on the menu.
With only five bottles yielded from a single pot, it was never meant to circulate widely. For just a few months each year, in the inner rooms of the ryotei, it was poured into the glasses of a limited number of guests.
The Lake Clan and a Sake Made by Three Brothers
Bunka 2, the year 1805. Naminooto Shuzo was born in this place. As of 2026, the brewery holds more than 220 years of history.
It stands in Honkatata, Otsu City, close to the floating temple of Ukimido that juts into Lake Biwa, and beside “Wild Geese Descending at Katata,” one of the celebrated Eight Views of Omi. The Nakai family, who lead the brewery today, are descendants of the “Katata-shu,” the armed lake clan who once held sway over these waters. A line of lake warriors brewing sake on the same shores for more than two centuries is a testament to a deeply rooted local history.
The brewery today is carried by Takashi Nakai, the tenth-generation master, together with his two brothers. The eldest oversees brewery management and the kamaya, the rice-steaming role; the middle brother serves as toji, the chief brewmaster; the youngest takes charge of the koji room. For nine generations, the brewery had relied on a toji invited from outside. In their generation, that role was finally brought back within the family. The turning point was seven years of training under Taiichi Kanai, a revered master of the Noto toji lineage, who passed down the very soul of sake brewing.
On the label of each bottle, the names of the three brothers are engraved, “as proof that this is a sake we can recommend with confidence, without hesitation.”
Yuzu First, Then Ginger
Poured into a glass, the first to rise is the fresh, cool fragrance of Kyushu yuzu. On the first sip, the bright acidity of yuzu runs across the tongue. Just when one begins to think that is all there is, the slow, deeper spice of reduced ginger follows. Earthy, warm, pulling the finish tight without leaving any trace of sweetness. A second layer of flavour, arriving quietly from behind the first.
The ABV is 8%. Poured over soda, it rises lightly on the palate, offering a refined, Japanese-style interpretation of ginger ale. Diluted with hot water, the warming properties of ginger slowly release the body from the chill of over-conditioned rooms. A single bottle, adapting seamlessly to the shifting temperatures of the modern climate.
From Behind Closed Doors, to Glasses Beyond Its Walls
A cup once encountered only in the inner rooms of the ryotei has now been bottled, and begun its journey beyond the brewery grounds.
The labour remains unchanged: five small bottles from one pot. What has changed is the place in which it is tasted. From a tatami room where the small waves of Lake Biwa can be heard drifting in from outside, to glasses beyond its walls. The density of time that the brewery has guarded for more than 220 years still dissolves, quietly, within the glass.(Mr.Bacchus)
This article is intended solely to explore the craftsmanship and cultural heritage of Naminooto Shuzo and its Premium Ginger Shoga & Yuzu liqueur, and does not aim to promote or encourage the consumption of alcohol. / บทความนี้จัดทำขึ้นเพื่อนำเสนอข้อมูลเกี่ยวกับงานฝีมือและมรดกทางวัฒนธรรมของ Naminooto Shuzo และเหล้าลิเคียวร์ Premium Ginger Shoga & Yuzu เท่านั้น มิได้มีเจตนาเพื่อส่งเสริมหรือโฆษณาเครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์ สำหรับผู้มีอายุ 20 ปีขึ้นไป โปรดดื่มอย่างรับผิดชอบ