We did some research about the history of the various types of liquor that are made in Hokkaido! Sake Not much is known about the history of sake brewing in Hokkaido, but historians know that industries had already sprung up in areas such as Esashi, Matsumae and Hakodate by the Edo Period (1603-1867). But sake brewing in Hokkaido didn’t really hit its stride until 1872, a few years after the Meiji Restoration, when brewer Shibata Yojiuemon moved to Sapporo from Ishikawa Prefecture on the mainland and opened what is now Nippon Seishu by the Sosei River. Sake is brewed in the cold winter months, so Hokkaido is the ideal location … Continue reading History of Hokkaido’s liquor industries