Learn Local Fermentation Culture at Myoraku-ji Temple with Noriko

This workshop is suited to travelers who want to understand how Japanese fermented foods are made and used, learning directly from a local fermentation master. It appeals to those interested in Japanese food culture and fermentation, as well as home cooks seeking adaptable principles. Through dialogue, observation, and light hands-on practice under the master’s guidance, the experience explores Japanese fermented foods as part of everyday life rather than as a recipe-based cooking class.

Myorakuji is a historic Buddhist temple with a history spanning more than 1,000 years. Led today by its 27th-generation head priest, the temple continues to play an important role in the life of the local community.

Your host, Noriko, is the wife of the head priest and a local fermentation specialist. After moving to the area, she developed a deep interest in the region’s distinctive food culture, shaped by cold winters and a long tradition of fermentation.

Drawing on local knowledge while adding her own creativity and flexibility, Noriko has developed her own approach to fermentation, creating dishes that respect tradition while adapting it for contemporary life. Today, she works together with local residents to share and sustain these food traditions for future generations.

This journey begins at JR Maibara Station, where you meet your guide and travel together by local train to Kinomoto.

Upon arrival, you first enter the main hall of Myorakuji Temple, a community Buddhist temple with over 600 years of history. Here, you are introduced to the relationship between Buddhist practice, daily life, and food culture, and the role temples have long played as places of learning and gathering.

You then move to the temple kitchen, where the workshop with a local fermentation master, Noriko, begins.

The session begins with a short introduction to the principles of Japanese fermented foods and their role in everyday meals rather than special occasions. You then observe and engage with Noriko during a light, guided exploration that highlights balance, timing, and the interaction between ingredients and microorganisms.

Rather than following fixed recipes, learning unfolds through conversation, observation, and practice. Depending on the season, the workshop may include miso, pickles, or other traditional fermented foods, along with simple seasonal dishes.

The session concludes by tasting the dishes together and reflecting on how these principles can be carried back into your own kitchen.

After the workshop, the experience continues with a relaxed walk through Kinomoto. You visit one long-established sake brewery and one soy sauce brewery, each with histories spanning several centuries.

At the sake brewery, Yamaji Shuzo Brewery, one of the oldest sake breweries in Japan, a small tasting is included as part of the visit, offering insight into how flavor, tradition, and history continue to live on today.

As you walk through the town, you observe how fermentation remains quietly woven into daily life and local relationships.

The tour concludes at Kinomoto Station.

• Available year-round except New Year; winter brewing season itineraries may vary
• Start time: 10:00 am
• Standard Meeting point: JR Maibara Station/tour concludes at Kinomoto Station
• Alcohol tasting restricted to guests aged 20 or older

• Workshop duration: approx. 2.5 hours
• Town walk: approx. 2 hours at a relaxed pace
• Please inform us if you have specific learning interests
• Dietary preferences and restrictions can be accommodated with advance notice

• A sake tasting is included as part of the tour
• During the brewing season (approximately November to late January), or on Wednesdays, the tasting will be held as a guided session by a local sake sommelier at a separate location rather than at the brewery
• In such cases, guests may still visit the brewery shop to purchase sake

• This workshop is generally recommended for older children
• Guests under 18 must be accompanied by an adult

• The tour operates rain or shine
• Guests are strongly advised to arrange their own travel insurance.