What Makes Something Truly Special?

Perhaps what is truly precious is not being special at all, but living in harmony with nature, with others, and with the culture that has carried a craft this far.

OKUDA-SAN

Kaneyoshi Shoyu

Perhaps it is because we do not place much value on being “special.”

What is truly precious to us is that brewing has continued to be part of Japanese culture, carried from one generation to the next.

To add colour to it, to dress it up with superficial words and make it appear more special than it is can, I believe, sometimes lead us away from what truly matters.

There is something noble in making a livelihood from what has been born from, and nurtured within, the natural environment of Japan.

For us, brewing is not about competition, comparison or exploitation.

It is about coexistence.

A craft comes into being because it is sustained by many things—the land, the people, the ingredients, and the living environment around it. And in return, we have a responsibility to sustain them.

This is also why we choose soybeans and wheat grown without relying on pesticides, herbicides or chemical fertilizers.

I believe that pursuing greater umami or higher yields at the expense of nature goes against the natural order of things.

Perhaps it is not about being special at all.

Perhaps, for those of us who live on this Earth, simply living in harmony with nature is what is right.

I believe this is an act that is good for both people and nature.

And so, I want to continue choosing the path of coexistence.

Not because it makes what we do special.

But because it feels like the right way to live, to brew, and to carry this tradition forward.