Wakuwaku Brewery

Wakuwaku Brewery, officially called "Wakuwaku Handmade Farm Kawakita," is truly unique because it's a brewery run by an agricultural corporation.

President Hiroshi Iriguchi was facing a situation where fallow fields were increasing due to rice production adjustments. Fearing that he couldn't let go of the farmland his family had passed down for generations in his own lifetime, he decided in the late 1990s beer boom to grow barley on the fallow fields and make beer.

What's more, in the snowy, humid Hokuriku climate, six-row barley is easier to grow than the two-row barley typically used for beer. Iriguchi turned that to his advantage and brews beer with homegrown six-row barley. There are hardly any breweries making beer with domestically grown, self-cultivated barley, you know.

Even more surprising, instead of using imported malt like most breweries, Iriguchi wanted to make his own malt too. He obtained a broken shiitake mushroom dryer from a nearby farmer, then spent three years modifying it with reference to data from an agricultural experiment station and turned it into malt-production equipment.

For brewing water, they use the underground spring water of Mount Hakusan, so they literally make beer using only the blessings of the land. Their philosophy is "Beer starts with barley," and they have even obtained ISO 22000 and GLOBALG.A.P. certifications.

"Kanazawa Hyakumangoku Beer" is the brand. In addition to Pale Ale, Dark Ale, and Weizen, the Koshihikari Ale made with Koshihikari rice from Kawakita Town as an adjunct is interesting. The first sip is so gentle you'd think it was a lager, and it's the kind of beer that goes well with meals. Brewing staff member Kazuki Okubo used to work for an outdoor gear manufacturer and loves the mountains; he was scouted by Iriguchi at a mountain hut and joined the farm.