Owner's Profile

BREWER & FOUNDER

Akihiro Sugimoto

Representative Director Master Brewer Antique Dealer

STORY

When I was 31, I suffered a stroke at work, and from that day on, my life took a significant turn, cutting short my path as a craftsman.

At the time, I was working in semiconductor manufacturing equipment maintenance.

That workplace was quite demanding, with average overtime exceeding 100 hours/month and generally requiring me to work on business trips, spending 200 days a year in hotels. Eventually, my health broke down, and I became unable to work.

After resigning, I, who had always been familiar with antiques, entered the world of sake vessel beauty, such as guinomi (sake cups) and tokkuri (sake bottles).

While making a living through merchandising, a desire to "someday create something with my own hands again" never faded, continuing to burn deep within my heart.

Twenty years after the onset. As my paralysis eased,
the feeling that I might be able to work as a craftsman again began to sprout.

Around that time, I happened to attend a lecture by the president of a sake brewery.
I was deeply moved by his passion for sake brewing, and having always been interested in sake brewing, I was driven by the desire to brew sake myself.

The reason for this was a chuunibyou-esque longing for the phrase "moonshine during Prohibition." Men are always foolish, no matter how old they get.
And starting from my own image that Japanese moonshine is doburoku, I researched and learned that there is a license to manufacture doburoku.

It was the moment I resolved to step into the world of brewing.

Then, on January 28, 2026, I officially obtained a manufacturing license for "other brewed alcoholic beverages."
Now, in a small brewery with four 150L tanks, I quietly brew sake alone.

BREWERY

Brewing Tanks

150L x 4 tanks x Full operation

Due to small-batch brewing, new sake is released year-round.

Brewing Style

Each batch is a unique encounter

Because of the small batches, the taste changes each time, an experience not found in mass-produced sake.

Sake Vessel Collection

Currently an antique dealer

Still diligently collecting guinomi and tokkuri.

Management System

24/7 management with IoT

Brewing and koji-making data are managed in real-time to maintain optimal conditions.

PRODUCTS

Craft Sake Kime Shizuku

Clear sake with no off-flavors, pressed from doburoku using only gravity (fukuro-tsuri method).

Fruit Craft Sake Kime Fuwari

Doburoku-based with seasonal fruits added. A unique encounter where seasons and ingredients intersect. In addition to fruit doburoku, we also make fruit-flavored sake by filtering the moromi.

Nama Doburoku Kime Torori

Unfiltered live sake, retaining the umami of rice and the power of fermentation.

IoT BREWING

Real-time brewing management

Brewing data such as product temperature, room temperature and humidity, and specific gravity are collected and recorded 24 hours a day by IoT sensors.

The state of koji production is also visualized numerically, and by maintaining an optimal environment for each batch, we stabilize quality even in a small brewery.

JOURNEY

Age 31

Suffered a stroke at work. Forced to leave craftsman work.

Convalescence & Career Change

Restarted as an antique dealer. Deepened my encounter with sake vessels while holding onto the desire for "monozukuri" (craftsmanship).

Approximately 20 years after onset

Experienced recovery from paralysis. A lecture by a sake brewery president ignited my passion for brewing. The COVID-19 pandemic pushed me forward.

January 28, 2026

Obtained a manufacturing license for "other brewed alcoholic beverages." Began doburoku brewing. Days of brewing sake with the hands that cherished sake vessels.

May 2026

Selected as a 12th-generation participant in the "Osaka Product Project" by Osaka Prefecture.