Umenoyado Brewery & Direct Shop
Choose a sake-brewing tour, make plum liqueur or syrup, join a koji workshop, or browse the direct shop; each booked activity has different rules.
AI-generated visual study · not a documentary photographDiscover Umenoyado Brewery & Direct Shop
Umenoyado's current brewery and direct shop in Teraguchi offers more than one kind of visit. A guided tour uses rice displays, fermentation sounds and video content to introduce sake-making, then offers a five-drink tasting for eligible adults. Separate reservations let visitors blend their own plum liqueur or non-alcoholic syrup, or learn about fermentation while preparing shio-koji and shoyu-koji. These are distinct programmes with different prices, group sizes and lead times, rather than one combined tour. The shop also sells the brewery's drinks and selected food. Older Nara directory entries still point to the former Higashishitsu site; the operator's current address is 27-1 Teraguchi.
Decide between shop and scheduled tour
The operator presents the direct shop as a place to see its range of sake and fruit liqueurs, including shop-only items and non-alcoholic drinks. Browsing the shop is different from joining the brewery programme. The tour includes rice and fermentation exhibits, an explanation by staff, five sake/liqueur samples for eligible adults, a non-alcoholic option and a small souvenir. It lasts about 45 minutes. Product line-up and gifts may change.
Reserve before travelling
The operator lists tour sessions at 10:30 and 14:30 on shop operating days, with individual bookings accepted online until 15:00 the previous day. The displayed individual price is ¥1,200 including tax, tasting and gift, and the published capacity is fifteen per ordinary session. Groups of ten or more must contact the tour team by email by 16:00 seven days before the visit. A walk-in shop visit is not a tour booking.
Make a plum liqueur or non-alcoholic syrup
The separate plum workshop lets participants choose from several plums and sugars, combine them into a personal bottle, and take it home the same day. The operator lists ¥2,200 per person and up, depending on whether the recipe is syrup or liqueur and on ingredients; sessions are about 45 minutes at 11:30 or 15:30 on shop days, by reservation, with up to fifteen people. Individual booking closes at 15:00 the previous day; groups of ten or more should enquire seven days ahead. The drink takes about two weeks to finish at home. The operator warns the bottle is not designed for air travel, so check airline and destination import rules before choosing this activity.
Learn to prepare koji seasonings
A different 45-minute workshop introduces fermentation and the brewery's koji, then participants prepare both shio-koji and shoyu-koji, taste small dishes made with them, and take the jars home to finish over roughly one to two weeks. The listed price is ¥3,300 per person, starting at 13:00 on shop days. It requires booking at least seven days ahead and runs only with two to six people; the operator says it will cancel and notify participants if the minimum is not met by that deadline. Allergy details belong in the booking notes, but the operator may not be able to accommodate every request. It warns that inhaling or contacting koji may trigger allergy symptoms; people with respiratory conditions or concerns should consult a medical professional before joining.
Language and drinking rules affect the experience
The operator says tours and other hands-on sessions are Japanese-only and asks non-Japanese-speaking groups to bring an interpreter, around one for twenty brewery visitors. People under twenty and those who choose not to drink receive a non-alcoholic option; drivers cannot sample alcohol. The tour page says the shop and experience room have step-free access, but ask about the full route and any support needed before booking. Do not plan to drive after drinking.
Check this week's event closure and transport notice
The normal shop schedule is 10:00–18:00 with irregular closures, but the operator's notice changes it for 23–26 October 2026: 10:00–13:00 on Friday 23 October; 10:00–15:00 during the Autumn Brewery Opening event on 24–25 October; and closed all day Monday 26 October. On the event weekend the brewery says parking is unavailable and visitors must not arrive by car, motorbike or bicycle. It says a shuttle from Kintetsu Shinjo is planned; check the operator's event page for confirmed operation and timetable before relying on it. Event sales are limited and differ from normal shop service. These are shop notices; separately confirm that any booked tour or workshop is operating.
Arrive at the new Teraguchi site
The operator gives 27-1 Teraguchi, approximately twenty-five minutes on foot from Kintetsu Shinjo Station or five minutes by car from Katsuragi IC, with roughly fifteen free parking spaces. A current Yahoo map point was used only as an approximate pin, and the printed address and operator walking guide remain authoritative. The old VisitNara entry still shows 27 Higashishitsu; navigating to it would take a visitor to the former site.
What to look for
Choose among a brewery tour, plum-making and a koji workshop
Plan ahead: each hands-on programme has separate booking terms
Current Teraguchi site, distinct from the old directory location
Photo notes
The operator permits personal photos during tours and experiences but disallows video there; respect other visitors' portrait rights. Personal SNS permission does not license operator photos or MyNara's editorial reuse. Request a separate commercial/editorial photo agreement before publishing facility images.
Make a day of it
Explore guides close to this map point, then check the actual route before travelling. Distances below are straight lines, not walking distances or travel times; map points may not be entrances.
Sources & editorial status
Original MyNara draft based on the linked sources. Sources reviewed 20 October 2026. Opening arrangements, prices and offers may change; use the operator's current information before travelling.
- Official Nara Travel Guide — venue identity
- Umenoyado — current shop, location, language and photo policy
- Umenoyado — brewery tour price, duration, booking and tasting
- Umenoyado — plum liqueur and syrup workshop
- Umenoyado — koji seasoning workshop and allergy cautions
- Umenoyado — 23–26 October 2026 hours and event access notice
- Nara Visitors Bureau — present Teraguchi address
- Yahoo Map — approximate current direct-shop pin