Golden Week drive with my partner towards Umi. The weather was nice and it felt great. When it comes to Umi, there's Kobayashi Shuzo from "Bandai". They have a big cedar ball as a symbolic feature, with a direct sales store next to it. We bought freshly squeezed and stored ginjo sake. It makes me want to hum the CM song "We are from Bandai" that everyone in Fukuoka knows. Also, we bought a label, not a jacket photo, and enjoyed the barley shochu Kinukake, which has a gentle barley aroma. By the way, on this day, Jun from Rombu was filming his show, so it will be aired soon. ● Shop Information Kobayashi Shuzo 092-932-0001 Umi 2-11-1, Umi-cho, Kasuya-gun

Blog ⇒ [Riding on the Flowing Clouds♪] After 33 years, I returned to my hometown of Hyogo Prefecture. I thought that being away for so long would make it feel like I was in a Urashima Taro-like situation when I returned to my hometown. However, I was able to settle in more smoothly than I had imagined. I'm still not used to the Kansai dialect, but (you also speak in Kansai dialect) haha. Also, escalators... I unconsciously stand on the left side (Hyogo mostly stands on the right side). It seems that in Kyoto, people split between left and right, but when I visited Kokura the other day, everyone was standing on the left. By the way, Kyoto is a mix of left and right. I had a similar experience when I first moved to Tokyo 33 years ago. First, I visited various shops in the neighborhood to immerse myself in Kansai culture (laughs). Also, since I wanted to travel to Western Japan, I took advantage of the "Go To Travel" campaign. When I wanted to travel the most, Tokyo was excluded, so this time, I came to Kyushu to vent my frustration. From December 21st to 25th, 2020, I traveled around Kitakyushu for 4 nights and 5 days. On the first day, I stayed at "Active Resorts Fukuoka Yahata" in Kitakyushu City. Since I chose a plan without dinner included, I bought a bottle of "Wakamatsu Imo Shochu Maimo" to enjoy while watching TV in my room. This shochu is produced by "Kobayashi Shuzo" in Fukuoka. Why is it called "Wakamatsu Imo Shochu" when it is made by Kobayashi Shuzo? It's because they use Satsuma potatoes from Yuumo in Wakamatsu Ward, Kitakyushu City. Also, the rice used for making the koji is from Sarukui in Moji Ward, Kitakyushu City. So, it's a "imo shochu" that truly loves the local area. It's reasonably priced at 1,210 yen for 500ml, and the taste and aroma are excellent, so I highly recommend it♪

September 2019. Second day in Fukuoka. On this day, we took a bullet train to Kumamoto for a day trip. The sake we drank on the bullet train this time was "Bandai Junmai Ginjo Hiyaroshi 720ml" from Kobayashi Sake Brewery in Umi-cho, Kasuya-gun, Fukuoka. We had tried it at an izakaya and liked it, so we bought it again. We enjoyed it on the way to Kumamoto on the "Mizuho" bullet train, which only took 35 minutes. It was sweet and flavorful, and we finished it in no time since there were three of us. It was really delicious. I haven't had much Fukuoka sake before, but I would definitely want to buy this one again. Thank you for the meal!

Walking with JR Kyushu to Umi. We visited the walking path along the abandoned railway line and ancient tomb sites before heading to the final Umi Hachimangu Shrine. We stopped by Kobayashi Sake Brewery to taste Hakata no Mori and amazake. Hakata no Mori has a crisp taste but is smooth and easy to drink. I wanted to buy some as a souvenir, but I was busy with plans to go to Hakata afterwards, so I had to give up on that idea. :)