Kagoshima’s Gourmet Scene: Where Fermentation Takes Center Stage

Fermentation has played a central role in Japanese cuisine for thousands of years, with products like miso, soy sauce, sake, and natto eaten across the country. Although the precise origins of fermentation remain unknown, some historians estimate the Jomon period, between 14,000 and 300 BCE, as the practice’s starting point in Japan.

Today, Kagoshima is a top destination for fermented cuisine in Japan. Numerous local businesses use the region’s natural geography, climate, and crops to produce delightful products rich in health benefits. Here, we reveal how Kagoshima’s culinary scene pushes the boundaries of fermentation.

Kakuida black vinegar aged under the sun

Black vinegar, also called “kurozu,” is a staple in Japanese cuisine. Made from brown rice, organic koji, and water, it’s commonly added to dishes during cooking to inject a complex and acidic flavor. However, the people of Kagoshima also often drink black vinegar for its rich taste and health benefits.

One of Kagoshima’s famous black vinegar businesses is Fukuyama Kurozu Co. — a brewing company that has been using traditional methods that are over 200 years old to make a new, long-aged black vinegar product called "Kakuida". While the company uses the highest-quality ingredients, such as locally produced organic rice, its use of stoneware pots to ferment black vinegar outdoors is notably special.

For at least three years, black vinegar will mature inside these pots day and night, exposed to the mountain climate. Each day, toji master brewers will inspect over 20,000 pots to ensure the color, smell, and fermentation are just right. With some black vinegar fermented for up to 15 years, the wait is definitely worth it.

To experience the taste of this artisan black vinegar, head to Kurozu Restaurant Kakuida, the company’s dedicated restaurant. Here, you’ll discover black vinegar pork, wagyu with black vinegar sauce, and even a baked cheesecake dessert made from black vinegar. Then, browse the brand’s exceptional products in the shop below.

Fukuyama Kurozu Co.

• Address: 311-2 Fukuyamacho Fukuyama, Kirishima, Kagoshima 899-4501
• Telephone number: 099-218-8345

Kagoshima’s specialty shochu at Komasa Jyozo

Sake is undoubtedly the alcoholic beverage most synonymous with Japan. Made from rice, water, koji, and yeast, the widespread availability of its core ingredients makes it one of the most beloved aspects of Japanese cuisine. However, Kagoshima's particularly arid soil makes rice production far more complex than in most parts of the country.

Instead, the climate is more suited to farming sweet potatoes, which ultimately led to the creation of another popular beverage, shochu. Typically fermented from sweet potatoes, water, and koji, this potent drink is closely associated with Kagoshima and its unique climate and produce.

Perfect for drinking straight, on the rocks, or mixed with soda, there’s no shortage of ways to enjoy this centuries-old beverage. If you’re looking to taste a highly rated shochu, local distiller Komasa Jyozo is recognized for its top-of-the-line products that capture everything special about the drink.

Founded almost 140 years ago, you’re invited to tour the company’s shochu production process, where you can watch workers produce fermented mash. Meanwhile, you can learn how Komasa Jyozo uses both horizontal type and vertical type potstills to maximize the flavor of the ingredients and deliver a superior product, such as the popular Mellowed Kozuru.

Komasa Jyozo

• Address: 3309 Hiyoshicho Hioki, Kagoshima 899-3101
• Telephone number: +81-99-292-3535

Japanese whisky born from shochu at Kanosuke Distillery

It’s safe to say that Japan is obsessed with whisky. However, the nation’s interest is little more than a hundred years old.

Today, you’ll find world-class whisky distilleries in virtually every part of Japan. Yet there aren’t many that rival Kagoshima’s Kanosuke Distillery. Founded in 2017 with Komasa Jyozo as its parent company, this award-winning whisky distillery has drawn from the organization’s wealth of shochu knowledge to produce a spectacular beverage.

This unique process sees Kanosuke Distillery use three pot stills to create its distillate rather than the more common two pot still setup, enabling a variety of flavors and aromas that other producers can’t match. However, perhaps the brand’s most interesting trait is its use of casks once used to store shochu, resulting in an incredible profile distinct to the distillery.

Set along Fukiagehama Beach on the west coast of Kagoshima Prefecture, the Kanosuke Distillery is open for tours. Led by a craftsman themself, you’ll roam the modern two-story facility to learn about the distilling process. Then, you can rest at The Mellow Bar to soak up stunning views of the East China Sea and one of the longest sand beaches in Japan.

Komasa Kanosuke Distillery 

• Address: 845-3 Hiyoshicho Kaminokawa, Hioki, Kagoshima 899-2421
• Telephone number: +81-99-201-7700
• Opening hours: 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM (Shop closes at 4:30 PM)

Makurazaki’s katsuobushi: The foundation of Japanese cooking

Katsuobushi, or dried bonito flake, is used so extensively throughout Japanese cuisine that you might consider it a foundational ingredient. From traditional dashi soup stock to garnishes on noodle, egg, vegetable, and tofu dishes, it’s hard to miss its umami flavor once you begin to recognize it everywhere.

Made from bonito fish, also known as skipjack tuna, katsuobushi is created by deboning, simmering, drying, and repeated smoking to achieve a hardened form which can then be shaved and used for cooking. With this process taking weeks or even months to complete, the two most common types of katsuobushi are arabushi and karebushi. 

The latter has an additional process where a mold bacteria is applied in numerous layers and then fermented, resulting in a deeper umami flavor. In southern Kagoshima, Makurazaki is celebrated for its high-quality karebushi. Supported by the area’s temperate seaside climate, this city produces more than half of all katsuobushi in Japan. Walking through the streets of Makurazaki, you can take in the unique smoky, umami aromas that waft in the air. 

Yamazaki Katsuobushi Shoten is  a respected katsuobushi producer in Makurazaki, as it handles the entire production from start to finish. You can experience it on a guided tour as you get an up-close glimpse of this crucial ingredient and experience a dark and smokey space filled with racks of drying fish.

For even more katsuobushi encounters, you can also head to Nakahara Suisan's odashi company, "Katsu Ichi". This vibrant shop in Makurazaki is focused on providing a vast range of products made from katsuobushi. Here, you’ll come across convenient dashi packs for homemade soup, senbei crackers, sauces, and jellies. There are also classes provided in English  where you can learn how to make dashi.

Yamazaki Katsuobushi

• Address: 48 Otsuka Nakamachi, Makurazaki, Kagoshima 898-0028
• Telephone number: +81-99-372-0088

Nakahara Suisan - Katsu Ichi

• Address: 74-1 Higashi-Honcho, Makurazaki, Kagoshima 898-0014
• Telephone number: +81-99-372-2211

Sweet and tangy black garlic at Yakuzen Komachi

Black garlic has been used to elevate countless dishes throughout Asia for many years, but this aged garlic has skyrocketed in popularity in Japan. While shochu, sake, and katsuobushi have been made and enjoyed across the country for centuries, black garlic is a relative newcomer that represents the next wave of fermented products.

With black garlic, it’s important to recognize that it’s made, not grown, as it starts life just like white garlic. However, the magic happens when white garlic is placed into a low-heat, high-humidity environment for several weeks. This eventually causes the cloves to turn black, the texture to become chewier, and the taste sweeter.

If you’d like to experience this tangy, less pungent variety of garlic, Kagoshima’s Yakuzen Komachi is a well-known producer of yakuzen – medicinal food products. Inside this stylish store, you’ll find a wealth of edible goods designed to enhance your health and well-being, such as spices, teas, soups, and black garlic. 

Grown on the pesticide-free Komachi Farm, the company’s black garlic offers increased polyphenol levels compared to other producing areas. This antioxidant may promote brain function, lower blood sugar, and reduce the risk of heart disease. According to the owner, Nagamine-san, black garlic is best mixed with dairy products like yogurt and cheese.

To sample a black garlic tea, you can head into the store to purchase Yakuzen Komachi’s Energy tea set. Meanwhile, you can relish a hands-on experience by creating shichimi — a zesty Japanese spice mixture containing seven ingredients. You’ll use a special wheel to grind the local spices before taking home this fresh blend to enjoy.

Yakuzen Komachi

• Address: 1983 Makizonocho Shukukubota, Kirishima, Kagoshima 899-6507
• Telephone number: +81-99-576-1185
• Opening hours: Monday–Saturday from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM

Experience Kagoshima’s incredible fermented cuisine

Ready to get immersed in Kagoshima’s fermented flavors? Reaching your destination is easy from Tokyo, with flights departing Tokyo Narita Airport touching down at Kagoshima Airport in approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes. 

For the most convenient way to explore the country, make sure you use the JAL Japan Explorer Pass. Featuring special airfares to more than 30 cities across Japan Airlines’ domestic network, you can spend more time exploring each incredible region.