＼ Limited to April – May ／
natura Asamakoji × KURABITO STAY Collaboration
With Special hands-on koji skincare and cooking lessens！
Two-day KURABITO Experience (Koji making)
~ Learning Japanese food culture! Traditional “Koji” making ~
1st term: Sat. Apr. 18th ~ Sun. Apr. 19th 8 to 10 People
2nd term: Sat. May. 9th ~ Sun.May. 10th 8 to 10 People
3rd term: Sat. May. 30th ~ Sun. May. 31st 8 to 10 People
About this special collaboration:
This is a limited-period collaboration with Mrs. Yasue Oki, founder of “natura Asamakoji” — a gentle “forest koji sweets” shop in our neighboring town.
This program was born from the voices of our guests who said, “I wish I could bring koji into my daily life more.” We had cherished this idea for a long time, and are delighted that it has finally come to life.
In addition to KURABITO STAY’s signature brewer experience — authentic koji-making inside a historic sake brewery — this two-day program also includes natura Asamakoji’s original koji skincare & cooking lesson, creating a truly immersive “all-about-koji” weekend.
We believe past participants of our brewer program will also find this experience fresh and inspiring. We warmly invite you to “return” to Saku in the beautiful season of spring greenery.
Languages Supported
Japanese with additional support explanations in English.
Maximum Occupancy
We have 8rooms in total, 6 single rooms, 2 double rooms.
* If you are applying for 2 people, please let us know at the time of application which room type you would like. If there is no mention of it, we will contact you by email.
Minimum Number of Participants
5 people
*We reserve the right to cancel the event if we do not reach the minimum of 5 applicants.
Fee
【General】 per person 109,800 yen (tax included)
【Returning guests with a Kurabito Experience certificate number】 per person 99,800 yen (tax included)
Includes lodging for 1 night and 2 days, along with 2 meals (1 dinner,1 breakfast)
Includes the Kurabito Experience (A hands-on Kurabito experience where you can take part in everything from rice washing and steaming to making koji ) and souvenirs: an original KURABITO STAY Tenugui (hand-cloth) and English support
Also included in the fee:
Sake brewing lessons, rental boots to be worn during the experience, rental work clothes, Koji seminar fee (including course materials), Koji skincare lesson fee (including course materials), 100ml koji lotion, 20g koji moisturizing emulsion cream (includes small bottles for taking your items home) and liability insurance.
Special Presents
– All pictures taken during the Kurabito Experience will be made available for download. (For safety and hygiene concerns, please be aware that you will not be allowed to bring your camera or smartphone with you during the experience. Instead, KURABITO STAY staff will endeavor to take numerous and heartfelt photos of all of our participants.)
– At the end, you will be presented with a certificate commemorating your completion of the Kurabito Experience.
“All you can drink” service while your stay！
KURABITO STAY has installed the “sake server” on the first floor of our building. Guests can enjoy Kitsukura Shuzo’s limited sake and seasonal sake in the Saku area free of charge.
*This photo is for illustrative purposes.
Schedule
=== Day 1===
Visitors should plan to arrive at KURABITO STAY by 13:45 (Check-in is possible from 13: 00 onward.)
※Please change into KURABITO STAY’s work clothes before the orientation.
14:00 – 14:45 Orientation
14:45 – 15:45 Sake seminar and a tour of the brewery facilities
15:45 – 16:00 A traditional purification ritual will be conducted before entering the brewery.
16:00 – 16:30 Sake brewing experience (washing rice)
16:30 – 17:00 Sake brewing experience (Sorting Koji)
17:00-17:15 – Break
17:30〜18:00 natura Asamakoji presents “Making your own skincare items with koji” and cooking lessons
Using koji nurtured at the foot of Mt. Asama, you will create a gentle, moisturizing “skincare just for you.” Making skincare products from scratch may feel a little intimidating at first, but please don’t worry — we will guide you through simple methods, along with tips for caring for your natural skin and bringing out its beauty.
※ In addition to the lesson text, you may take home the koji lotion (100 ml) and koji moisturizing emulsion (20 g) you make during the class. （Containers are provided.）
※ After the lesson, we will also offer koji from Kitsukura Shuzo (not for retail sale) by weight. It can be kept for about 1 week in the refrigerator or around 3 months in the freezer. If you wish, you are welcome to purchase some to take home.
*This photo is for illustrative purposes.
18:30〜 Dinner
Special dishes made with koji that also pair well with sake, produced and selected by natura Asamakoji
*This photo is for illustrative purposes.
Selection of koji dishes
From natura Asamakoji, you will enjoy a special meal prepared with seven types of koji, carefully crafted from thoughtfully selected grains and nurtured through three days of temperature control. Fresh, enzyme-rich koji is used to brew amazake, shio-koji, shoyu-koji and more. Even the sauces and dressings are made with koji-based seasonings, all prepared with great care to support gentle gut health. Please enjoy this nourishing, koji-centered meal together with local sake from Saku.
Stay up as long as you like, then sleep soundly in your room to prepare for the next day.
=== Day 2 ===
7:00 – 7:30 Breakfast (a healthy meal for sake brewers; with everyone together saying “Itadakimasu!”)
8:00 – 10:45 a.m. Kurabito experience
(From rice steaming and carrying to the koji-muro, or koji room)
While the rice is being steamed, we will conduct a “koji seminar”, where you’ll learn all about this remarkable fermenting agent and its many health benefits.
10:45 – 11:15 Closing ceremony
A ceremony will be held where the brewer will give you a “certificate of completion of the experience”.
Checkout (payment)
The program will end at around 12 noon.
At Kitsukura Sake Brewing’s ”Shuraku” store, you’ll have the opportunity to buy souvenirs for the road.
For lunch, we encourage you to patronize another of the “Kurabito Friendly” shops in the area.
Information about preparation for Kurabito experience
To apply, click here
