This premium experience content allows visitors to see and experience Yonezawa's traditional culture up close and personal.

(1) Sake brewery tours with the present-day head of the brewery, which has been in existence for 400 years

The Toko Sake Brewery, founded in the 16th century as the official sake brewery of the Uesugi family, offers visitors the opportunity to learn about the traditions and techniques of sake brewing with a guided tour by the current owner of the brewery, who boasts over 400 years of history. Toko's Sake Brewery, one of the largest sake brewery museums in the Tohoku region, offers an atmospheric space that will transport you back in time to a 19th century sake brewery, and the brewing brewery is a renovated earthen storehouse where sake was actually brewed.

The large earthen storehouse with a floor space of 140 tsubo (about 1,860 square meters) has the feel of an old sake brewing site. The company is also currently working on sustainable sake brewing.

(2) Safflower dyeing experience to meet world-quality weavers

Textiles produced in Yonezawa are called “Yonezawa-ori” and are characterized by the use of naturally occurring dyes. Because the dyes are made from plants, the gentle texture and rich colors are attractive. Safflower dyeing, one of the most representative dyeing methods, uses safflower, a plant of the Asteraceae family, as a dye, and it is said that Japan is the only country in the world that uses safflower as a natural dye. Its characteristic red color can be called “Japan red. Ltd., which specializes in safflower dyeing, you can hear about the history of Yonezawa textiles and safflower dyeing from the head of the company.