DELICIOUS CUISINE AND SAKE BREWERY TOUR

Head to a local sake supplier with a guide and taste a range of carefully selected sakes as you learn how fascinating and involved the world of Japanese sake can be. Hopefully you will be able to recognise some of the more famous brewery names after your tasting and as you stroll around town you will drop into a few different izakayas and restaurants to eat and drink. The guide will show you the local favorite watering holes and help you find the best things on the menu. It is also possible to do this tour without the accompanying guide. (The restaurants can be pre-booked for you and meal coupons provided.)

A stay in ryugon is an experience in itself. The original buildings were constructed from traditional dwellings of the area and then the whole facility went through an innovative redesign. There are three types of room that all offer a different style and experience: the Villa Suite, the Classic, and the Private Villa. It is almost like staying in a museum and every guest should explore the buildings to learn their secrets. There is a POP GUIDE audio tour to help you learn about this fascinating hotel.

There are many famous sake breweries in this region and this tour will take you to visit two of them for tastings. You'll experience the range of methods employed in the sake making process and tour a traditional brewery that still uses processes much as they have always been done, as well as a more modern facility that is pioneering a new style of sake making. You will gain insights into the world of sake and learn how to appreciate some of the more subtle differences.

Take a behind the scenes look at a local artisan producer employing traditional methods to make miso and pickles which are important staple ingredients in Yukiguni cuisine. Their methods take full advantage of the snowy environment and you will feel a connection to the food culture and history of this area.

A full course dinner of creative cuisine at its best that incorporates many unique aspects of Yukiguni cuisine; plants and mushrooms foraged from the mountain slopes, fermented ingredients, vegetables stored under snow to bring out their flavors are just some of the local specialities. Cooking around the coals of an open hearth is a traditional technique that has been passed down through the generations at ryugon and is used to perfectly grill the meat and fish. Each dish reveals something about the history or culture of Yukiguni and the wisdom it has taken to survive the long winters. Another source of pride of the area is the delicious local sake. These and locally produced wine are the perfect accompaniment to this feast.

A stay in ryugon is an experience in itself. The original buildings were constructed from traditional dwellings of the area and then the whole facility went through an innovative redesign. There are three types of room that all offer a different style and experience: the Villa Suite, the Classic, and the Private Villa. It is almost like staying in a museum and every guest should explore the buildings to learn their secrets. There is a POP GUIDE audio tour to help you learn about this fascinating hotel.

Under the gentle supervision of a local lady who has been brought up in the food culture of the region you will help prepare a meal of traditional rural dishes that are household favorites in Yukiguni. Prepare a fire and cook the rice over the flames in the traditional kamado pot which produces wonderfully moist rice. Your hostess will share her knowledge with you as you work together, and you will learn about different aspects of the food in the region where having enough food to last through half a year of winter was vital. The different ways of preserving and fermenting food are now staples in the cuisine of the area.