JAPAN Day 17

Nov 6 - Shodo Island

Words: Sebastian + Images: Araceli

An important day. We head to Shodo Island, to meet Yamamoto San , the 5th Generation Head of Yamaroku Soy Sauce Brewery. An incredible man who accepted our request for a visit many weeks ago. I have the itinerary on my phone, I have a printed itinerary, we have our tickets, and at 05:00AM we leave the hotel into unknown territory.
It is a total of 2:47 min from the hotel to the Takamatsu Sea Port, where we are to meet Shimamoto San , international business partner. We were to be there at 9 AM., we aim for 08:47. 3 Metro stations. 5 Train stations. Average transfer time: 7 minutes. We make it. Seamless. Takamatsu is much larger and busier than we thought. Many groups of tourists congregate. It is a famous meeting point for those who go on pilgrimages around Shikoku Island. We'll do that one day as well.
The seaport is only a few meters away from the station, where we meet Shimamoto San and his business partner. He kindly organizes fast ferry tickets and off we go towards Shodoshima Sea Port .

An hour later, we make land. It is a gray day, with a bit of drizzle. Not normal for the season, we hear. The island is famous for its Mediterranean climate. Yamamoto San arrives, we bow, we hug, we receive business cards. Now on our way to the brewery, we chat, and exchange backgrounds, stories. We ask, a lot, about them, what they do, how they do it, why they do it.

Pretty soon we arrive at the brewery, two buildings on an awkward bend of a residential street. There is some activity, tourists arrive in small groups and sparse waves. Yamamoto-san asks us if we are ready to visit. Absolutely. We start at where the oldest cedar barrels are. Some are more than 150 years old. He points at the native yeast, floating everywhere around us. His process is ancestral, slow, and long. Only a few families in Japan continue this tradition, making soy sauce in Kioke barrels. So few in fact, that Yamamoto San struggled to find barrels. He trained with the only remaining producing family and started the Kioke Craftsmen Revival Project production. He now has a total of 89 barrels that he and a team of 7 look after. Their pride is the Tsuru-bishio, a twice-brewed soy sauce that takes 4 to 5 years to be ready. He uses high-grade soybeans, wheat from Hokkaido, salt from Mexico and Shodo Island's climate, and time of course. He explains with passion. Weight each question to find the best answer. We talk about legacy and succession. Kioke Soy Sauce is a small part (less than 1%) of Japan's total soy sauce production. It will need a lot of effort to keep this ancestral method alive, especially since it doesn't appeal to the young generations. His son is at the moment, not interested. We end the conversation with a dream, a hope for a future where these crafts thrive, and young people see the value in keeping these traditions alive. By the end of the tour, we are friends, we don't speak the same language, but we do. He invites us to the annual Kioke Festival in January. We are seriously considering going.

He proposes lunch before getting on the next boat back to Takamatsu. Udon? Yes, please! By the port, he opens the door of a small house. Inside, the space is divided. One-third is a raised tatami floor with low tables. The rest of the dining room has a few rectangular tables. The kitchen is at the back, visible through the pass. What looks like three old friends operate the place. Two in the back, boiling fresh noodles, frying tempura prawns, washing, plating, sending. One in the front, looking after customers. There is one option, shrimp tempura udon. Hot or cold? Hot, please. It comes with plenty of daikon, ginger, negi and nori. The noodles are thick and uniform. The dashi fresh and deep. This is a warming bowl for the soul. We need to rush, boats only run every hour or so. We part ways, we bow, we hug. We promise we will be back soon.
On the way back, we admire the islands and rock formations. We forget Japan is an island sometimes, the sea is a vital part of its existence. We part ways with Shimamoto San at the ferry port. Thanking him for his generosity and help with translation. On the train rides back, we look at the scenery and the sunset. Tokyo comes tomorrow, and that means we are closer to the end. We feel we miss it already. In Kyoto, we opted for a Department Store dinner. Daimaru's basement floor offers an infinite array of kiosks. Sweets, pastries, breads, fruits, snacks, condiments, prepared food, sushi, and a supermarket. After a long tour, we run back to the hotel with out bounty. Sushi, tonkatsu, salads, sweets, and decadence. In the form of a vanilla pudding in a glass jar, topped with a round cheesecake. It is as good as it sounds.