Learn about the culture of fermentation and traditional vegetables in Yonezawa.

Learn about the culture of fermentation and traditional vegetables in Yonezawa.

Yonezawa has a long history and traditional culture as the castle town of the Uesugi clan.
The wisdom of our predecessors has been passed down through the culture of preserved and fermented food.
Yonezawa has been a production center of delicious rice grown in fertile soil with clear water, and has also inherited fermented food such as miso, soy sauce, sake, pickles, and more.
Combined, these make for a journey that incorporates the experience of encountering Yonezawa's unique food culture.
You can harvest Yonezawa's traditional vegetables that have been cared for and nurtured for a long time.
Through understanding the history of the foods and why they continued to be consumed, as well as through tasting and savoring traditional vegetabkes, you will surely discover the local charm of Yonezawa.

Recommended Route

Period
April to June
Tour Duration
2 days (1 night and 2 days)
Transportation
Car

Day 1

  • Michi no Eki Yonezawa/Yonezawa Station

    Meet at 12:15 Leave at 12:30

  • Akiba Kojimiso Jozo (Miso Brewery)

    Lunch and Miso Making Experience

    Akiba Kojimiso Jozo Otama-ya

    Founded in 1832. Akiba Kojimiso Jozo has been preserving its traditional tastes and quality. You can experience making monascus miso. Enjoy unique and delicious miso dishes for lunch. You should try the popular miso ice cream made from red miso dried and powdered by our original technology. Please enjoy!

  • Tōkō Sake Warehouse

    Explore the Sake Warehouse and taste the Sake. You can shop as well.

    Tōkō Sake Warehouse

    One of the largest sake brewing museums in the Tohoku Region. Elegant spaciousness inside the museum gives visitors the feeling of stepping back in time to an old sake warehouse in Meiji Era. This museum also has a store where visitors can taste and buy their favorite Tōkō Sake. The main wing of the sake warehouse is a historic building which was built in the traditional style without nails, using construction methods that cannot be replicated today.

  • Onogawa Onsen Meito no Yado Azumaso

    Arrival time 4:30 PM

    Onogawa Onsen

    'Ono no Komachi', a historic poet renowned for her beauty, is said to have found Onogawa Onsen having been welling up for 1,000 years. This famous hot spring flowing directly from its source will warm up your body and heal fatigue. We will prepare a Kenshin Course dinner using mainly mountain and local vegetables as well as Yonezawa beef, carp, and Japanese char. Relax your body and mind.

Day 2

  • Onogawa Onsen

    Leave at 9：00

  • Visit Naoe Sekitei (Naoe Stone Levee)

    About Naoe Sekitei

    While rebuilding the castle town in Yonezawa, Naoe Kanetsugu constructed a 10km-long stone levee (Naoe Sekitei) and so-called snake levee to protect the town against flooding. The snake levee, as it was called by the locals, was actually called Nozura, which was a construction method used to build stone walls during the Warring States period by stacking natural river stones horizontally. It is said that Naoe Kanetsugu himself directed this construction while working with low-ranking samurais.

  • Ukogi-picking Experience

    About Ukogi

    Ukogi is a plant in the family Araliaceae. In Yonezawa, ukogi plants have been used for hundreds of years to make hedge walls as well as for food use. Naoe Kanetsugu, a brilliant commnader of Uesugi clan, started the growth of ukogi. Later, Uesugi Yozan, the 9th lord of Yonezawa domain, recommended to make ukogi hedge walls. The young shoots, which can be enjoyed from spring to early summer, are delicious when cooked via many different methods such as boiling, chopping, and mixing with miso or tempura.

  • Lunch at Uesugi Hakushakutei (The Earl House of the Uesugi clan) /Uesugi Joshien

    Lunch and shopping

    Uesugi Hakushakutei/Uesugi Joshien

    Uesugi Hakushakutei offers traditional local cuisine as well as ukogi rice. Please enjoy the meal while viewing the beautiful Japanese garden and feeling a relaxed sense of time. Take your time and shop the flavors of famous stores in Yamagata/Yonezawa, Yonezawa speciality items that are perfect for souvenirs, and traditional crafts on-site at Uesugi Joshien.

  • Michi no Eki Yonezawa/Yonezawa Station

    The tour ends around 3:00 PM.

About travel consultation

We welcome private inquiries from those who want to sign up for a Yonezawa tour or try an experience in the tour.
Other various tours are also introduced.

Check this page to sign up for a tour.

Site for tours in Okitama area, Yamagata Prefecture.

Please contact us if interested.

Michi no Eki Yonezawa Tourist Information Center

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