In Vol. 2, we introduce Mr. Keisuke Niki, the President of KamikatsuKaitakudan Co., Ltd. Since he moved to Kamikatsu, Mr. Niki has been involved in video production and run a bar that is loved by local residents. What is his new business venture...?

Mr. Niki, who has been a resident of Kamikatsu since 2012, has a unique background. He was a "TV man" who had directed documentaries and dramas which were pretty popular in Japan at a TV production company in Tokyo.He moved to Kamikatsu in 2012 after falling in love with the people of Kamikatsu, which he first visited in 2009 while doing coverage and interviews for a TV program.

Incidentally, Sonoe Fujii, whom we introduced in the article vol.1, told us about her encounter with Mr. Niki at that time, which was impressive.

Ms. Fujii said, "As he proceeded with the interviews in Kamikatsu, he changed the program's script and introduced the program by saying, 'What's so great about the zero-waste initiative... it's not the town itself, nor the Zero Waste Academy, but the people of the town who are truly amazing!”

“In 2009, I visited Kamikatsu for the first time to produce and report on environmental activities such as the Zero Waste Academy.” Mr. Niki said.“I was introduced to Sonoe Fujii, who was the executive director of Zero Waste Academy at the time, as well as many other people involved in zero-waste activities in various ways, and met and talked with them. That led me to come to Kamikatsu three to four times a year.

Mr. Niki, who was 42 years old at the time, had been wanting to live in a rural area since his late 30s, and perhaps it is fair to say that the "timing" of his encounter with Kamikatsu was a miraculous and aperfect fit.

“What I thought was the best thing about Kamikatsu is that everyone, young and old, male and female, gets together and enjoys eating and drinking together. Kimi-chan, a famous Kamikatsu auntie, drinks sake straight from the bottle (laughs)! I was able to join in the fun and had a really good time.At that time, I was just starting to see and realize the limit of what I could 'do' in the TV world, and when I thought about 'what I enjoy doing,' moving to Kamikatsu became the choice for me."

After moving to Kamikatsu, Mr. Niki's first major move was to open a bar. The opening of the bar was a natural progression for Mr. Niki, who admits to both himself and others that he enjoys "drinking sake.”

There were very few places in Kamikatsu Town where we could go for a drink. The only places I could think of were Tsukigatani Onsen or Yamanishi Ryokan (Inn). If we wanted more, we would like to drink not only sake, but a variety of other alcoholic beverages.

He opened "Bar IRORI" (now "Restaurant & Bar IRORI") in February 2013. It is open only on Fridays and Saturdays, but it marked its 10th anniversary in 2023. It is now a bar that attracts many local residents every week, and many people from outside the town come to have a drink as well. “Bar IRORI" also offers a free shuttle service to and from the places in Kamikatsu Town...!　For Kamikatsu residents and weekenders staying in Kamikatsu Town, this is a place you can't miss.

KamikatsuKaitakudan, whose mission is to "create the most enjoyable village in Japan," is working on a new project from 2022: the production of "doburoku" made with rice from Kamikatsu's terraced rice paddies.
Doburoku is a traditional Japanese alcoholic beverage made from rice, rice malt, and water, which is fermented but not strained.The brewery's trade name is "Hermitage Valley Sake Brewery.”But why did they decide to make doburoku in the first place?

“A farmer in our neighborhood, from whom we buy rice every year, died when his combine harvester fell into a terraced rice field during harvesting. When I heard his wife saying some time after the funeral, 'I think I'm going to stop growing rice in those fields,' I couldn’t stop saying 'Can you let us work in the rice fields?’ It wasn't so much that I was sad that I couldn't eat rice from that field, but that I didn't want to let the beautiful scenery of these terraced rice paddies die out.”

However, rice farming and doburoku were not connected immediately after he took over the terraced rice paddies. He realized that "growing rice in terraced rice paddies is not profitable at all," and farmers in the town said, "It is cheaper to buy rice. The reason for growing rice in the terraced rice paddies is to protect the landscape.” At that time, he remembered doburoku, which he was impressed with when he drank it in the past.

“When I took over the terraced rice paddies, I thought that doburokuwas the best way to make rice farming a business rather than a hobby. When I asked elderly people in Kamikatsu, they told me that they used to make doburokuat their homes. We are also blessed with clean water from the mountains. So I thought let’s make doburoku ourselves!"

After learning about the recent trend to create "craft sake" such as doburoku, which is similar to make craft beer, Mr. Niki also participated in sake brewing training at “Tokyo Minato Brewery,” which supports the establishment of small sake breweries across the country.

“But then I thought of a young man in Kamikatsu whom I would like to ask to make our own sake."

Mr. Niki entrusted the sake brewing to a young 27-year-old man, Shota Yamada, whom he has known since he was a high school student. His grandmother is that auntie, Kimi-chan, whom Mr. Niki looks up to as his mentor. Shota knows the climate and nature of Kamikatsu very well, and he is also an enthusiastic researcher who is good at being creative...so he decided to put him in charge.

“I was going to make doburoku myself, but now that he is in charge, I’ve decided to leave it to him. Then, at the end of 2022, "Doburoku Anjin" was completed for the first time. It tasted just as good as the doburoku that had surprised me in the past. I am now satisfied with the taste, and I want to continue refining it.”

At the end of June 2024, Shota Yamada left the company when the production of "Doburoku Anjin" was settled.
Mr. Niki says, “He is still young and has many other things he wants to do. He is a very versatile person, and I look forward to his future activities.” And now, Mr. Niki himself took over the doburoku brewing.
Mr. Niki appeared on the popular YouTube program “Tsuhan-no-Tora (Tigers of Mail Order),” where he introduced the appeal of doburoku and had the “tigers” in stitches. “Hermitage Valley Sake Brewery” is now entering a new phase, with a huge response and a flood of orders for the program.

In addition to "Doburoku Anjin," Hermitage Valley Sake Brewery also produces "liqueurs" made from the town's specialty citrus fruits such as sudachi, yuzu, and yuko, as well as “craft doburoku” made with “Kamikatsu Awa Bancha," one of the rarest fermented teas in the world.

“By the way, Doburoku Anjin comes in both the "fire-heated" type sold at the market and the "fresh (raw)" type available only here at Bar IRORI. I hope you will come here and taste it.”

I have actually tasted both types of sake, the raw and the heated, and my impression is that it is a sake that can be drunk neatly but also has a rich taste of rice and sweetness....
The raw type was drier, while the fire-heated type had more of a sweetness to it. We look forward to seeing what the doburoku brewed in other years will taste like.

Mr. Niki is now working hard as the "president on the precipice" at Kamikatsu Kaitakudan. That is...to "sell" this doburoku! Mr. Niki is traveling all over Japan, even going door-to-door to promote the doburoku. You can watch his efforts on his YouTube channel.

Anyway, if you visit Kamikatsu on a weekend, you should go to Bar IRORI and enjoy a glass of fresh doburoku with Mr. Niki's stories and delicious food as a snack.

Restaurant & Bar IRORI
27 Aza Annotani, Fukuhara, Kamikatsu-cho, Katsuura-gun, Tokushima
Open: 18:00-23:30 (23:00 L.O.)
*Open only on Fridays and Saturdays