About the brand
Based at KOFUNE SAKE BREWERY in Umeda, Osaka, we produce sake with different personalities by multiple brewers
Based on the traditional production techniques of sake, new flavors are created by using ingredients that are not normally used in sake
Multiple brewers belong to it, each with their own philosophy to produce sake with different personalities
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Why are we doing?
What are we doing?
Commitment to the product
Who are supporting us?
The foundation of my launch of KOFUNE is the desire to create an environment where brewers can take on the challenge of brewing sake more freely.
What I faced in the process of transitioning from the IT industry to becoming a brewer was the structural barriers of the industry. Currently, it is not allowed to obtain a new sake production license, and the only way to make your own sake is to take on a huge risk, either inherit the family business or wait for the toji to become available. I thought it was necessary to change the current situation where the hurdles other than "sake brewing" were too high.
In order to enrich the future of sake, it is essential to increase the number of diverse producers with passion. We must create an environment where everyone can easily challenge the sake brewing they want to do.
That's why KOFUNE supports the "expression" of brewers like a music label. The reason why he set up a shared brewery in Umeda, Osaka is to create a "hub" where brewers and drinkers can mingle. The meaning of our existence is to deliver "experiences" and "stories" directly in the middle of the city.
Based at KOFUNE SAKE BREWERY in Umeda, Osaka, we embody a new form of sake through three main activities.
The first is the operation of a "shared brewery". The brewers gathered at KOFUNE share a full range of facilities and create a variety of sakes with completely different approaches that fully demonstrate their individuality.
The second is the operation of an "attached pub" that delivers the heat of the site as it is. By creating a place where you can directly taste the sake they make in a space lined with tanks, we create an experience where brewers and drinkers interact on a daily basis and overwhelmingly shorten the distance between them and "sake brewing".
And the third is distribution as a "label". In order to spread the unique sake that was born here to the world, KOFUNE will be responsible for distribution behind the scenes. We create an environment where brewers can focus on what they are making and create an ecosystem that brings their expression to more people.
Build, taste, spread. Through this cycle, we provide a stage for brewers to freely challenge.
Commitment to the product
KOFUNE SAKE BREWERY makes sake under the license of "other brewed sake" under the tax law. Because of the different framework from sake, we need to use secondary ingredients other than rice and rice koji, but we are taking this limitation against it in a positive way.
While freely combining various auxiliary ingredients and sometimes incorporating seasonal ingredients, we bring out flavors that have never been produced with conventional sake, and pioneer a completely new genre of "SAKE". By incorporating fruits, herbs, and fermentation techniques from other genres, it offers an unprecedented taste experience.
And what makes this free manufacturing method even more interesting is the presence of brewers who gather at KOFUNE and the small-batch manufacturing system. Depending on the approach and philosophy of the maker, sakes with different flavors appear one after another each time.
It does not seek a single correct answer, but expresses the individuality of each brewer and the inspiration of the moment as it is. That's the essence of our product.
KOFUNE's sake goes beyond the framework of mere "sake" and is widely supported by people who sympathize with the birth of a new culture.
Customers who visit the attached pub and partner stores are mainly in their 20s and 40s. In particular, it has garnered enthusiastic support from those involved in creative work and those who are sensitive to new values, and its free taste that is not bound by the conventional image of sake is highly appreciated by women and guests from overseas.
In addition, the restaurants that handle our sake are not just looking for delicious sake. All of the shops are places where you can share your desire to "support brewers who take on challenges beyond existing frameworks" and "want to transmit a new culture from their own stores."
KOFUNE is chosen by customers and stores with a high level of sensitivity who resonate with the "story" of the maker's challenge and want to enjoy and nurture the next generation of sake culture together.