In a first of its kind, a UK groundbreaking ceremony has taken place for the contstruction of a saké factory…   The Hashimoto family chose the site as it was close to where one of their children was attending school. The family, which owns Dojima, was supported by both UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) and the Japanese government. In March 2015 they paid more than £3m for the Fordham estate, which is close to Newmarket and consists of a Georgian manor and more than 200 acres (81 hectares) of parkland.  The rice will be imported from Japan, grown on a farm owned by the wife of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe.

*************

UK’s first Sake brewery at Fordham Abbey is blessed before building gets underway

01 November 2016 Seb Pearce in the Ely Standard

A ground-breaking ceremony has been held at the construction site of the UK’s first sake brewery.

The assistant priest prepares tamagushi offerings

Japanese company Dojima is to begin building the brewery on the Fordham Abbey Estate, creating 100 jobs, and invited guests to a traditional ‘Jichinsai’ ceremony to purify the building site on Friday October 28.

The ceremony was laid on to purify the construction site, and prayers were said for the safety of all those involved with the build.

The build is expected to take nine months to complete, with the first production of sake available in October 2017. Once finished, the Dojima sake brewery aim to make 10,000 bottles in their first trading year.

His Excellency, Ambassador Koji Tsuruoka attended the event and said: “Although this is a ceremony that happens in Japan when a new building is being constructed, it has never happened in the UK and I was very happy to be a part of it.

The construction site is blessed by the officiating priest (all photos Seb Pearce)

“The ceremony showed the respect that the two countries have for the tradition and it is through appreciation of these historical and cultural treasures that the two countries are bound very strongly together.”

The ceremony was also attended by councillors and MPs, including Lucy Frazer. She said: “The ceremony was fascinating and shows what a diverse area we are in. It’s great to have a new and interesting business establishing itself in the region and it will bring a great deal to the constituency in financial terms, as well as culturally.”

Yoshihide Hashimoto, owner of the Dojima Sake Brewery UK & Co said: “We were pleased to be joined by so many people for our Jichinsai ceremony. This traditional ceremony is fundamental in the build and we were very happy to share this moment with many of the local people who have been involved in the process so far.”

The project was given unanimous planning approval by East Cambridgeshire District Council and the construction of the building will see £9m invested over a period of five years.

*********

For the Dojima UK website, click here.  For an Asahi tv report of the event, click here.
All about the Fordham estate, here.

An official representative takes the tamagushi offering prior to offering it to the kami

Japanese ambassador visits Fens to conduct traditional ceremony at Britain’s first sake brewery
Posted Wednesday 2nd November 2016

A traditional Japanese ceremony was held at the construction site of the UK’s first sake brewery in East Cambridgeshire.

60 people attended the event, including the Japanese ambassador Koji Tsuruoka and MP for South East Cambridgeshire Lucy Frazer.

The ceremony known as ‘Jichinsai,’ a traditional Shinto ceremony undertaken to purify the building site prior to laying the foundations and to pray for the safety of the people involved in the construction. Before the ceremony came to an end, guests tasted some sake.

The building is expected to take nine months to complete, with the first production of sake available in October 2017. The Hashimoto family, who are building the Dojimo brewery, brought in their priest from Osaka to conduct the proceedings.

Mr. Tsuruoka attended the event and said: “Although this is a ceremony that happens in Japan when a new building is being constructed, it has never happened in the UK and I was very happy to be a part of it. The ceremony showed the respect that the two cultures that the two countries have for the tradition and it is through appreciation of these historical and cultural treasures that the two countries are bound very strongly. ”

Lucy Frazer, MP said: “The ceremony was was fascinating and shows what a diverse area we are in. It’s great to have a new and interesting business establishing itself in the region and it will bring a great deal to the constituency in financial terms, as well as culturally.

Mr Yoshihide Hashimoto, owner of the Dojima Sake Brewery UK & Co said: ‘We were pleased to be joined by so many people for our Jichinsai ceremony. This traditional ceremony is fundamental in the build and we were very happy to share this moment with many of the local people who have been involved in the process so far.”

The architects bringing this piece of Japan to a Georgian estate in england, they’ve have to adapt their design to fit the sake process. Jon Buck, an architect for Kay Pilsbury Thomas Architects, spoke about the design of the barn style brewery on Cambridge TV, saying: “It’s red the barn, it’s got a big window with a Japanese character that says ‘sake’ on it so it’s a very proud building that hopefully will shape the future of this site.”

The construction of the building will see £9m invested over a period of five years. The project was given unanimous approval by East Cambridgeshire District Council and is set to create up to 100 local jobs initially, both on the build process, as well as in the Sake brewery and the accompanying visitors center which will be located on the site.
– See more at: http://www.enterpriseeastcambs.co.uk/news/japanese-ambassador-visits-fens-to-conduct-traditional-ceremony-at-britains-first-sake-brewery#sthash.Itf4vp6A.dpuf

The temporary altar site for the jichinsai ritual

Symbolic breaking of the earth in the form of a ‘mountain’

A ceremonial sip of saké upon completion