11 October 2024

The Art of Community in Higashi-Iwase

When you’ve spent your whole life somewhere, it can be simultaneously exhilarating and terrifying to watch it change. In Japan, more and more of the population is relocating to cities for any number of reasons—opportunity, convenience, proximity to others—which means that the smaller towns and villages in more remote areas are dwindling in population. But even the not-so-remote places are affected.

One such area is Higashi-Iwase, a once-industrious town just 20 minutes from Toyama Station on the light rail. At its peak, this area was a stop for the kitamaebune, or merchant ships that traversed Japan’s ports between Hokkaido and Osaka. Despite its proximity to an urban area (Toyama City’s population clocks in at just over 400k), Higashi-Iwase suffered a decline of industry and business, and the people went with it. Masuda Ryuichiro, the fifth-generation owner of sake brewery Masuda Shuzo, witnessed this during his childhood. And when he stepped into his position at his family’s sake brewery, he decided to reverse the trend.

It is now growing in population, becoming an artists’ enclave that welcomes creatives of all kinds: glassmakers, potters, Michelin-starred chefs, and more. During our tour of Toyama, Team Musubi stopped by the town to speak with Masuda himself and enjoy a guided walkthrough of the town to see what it has to offer, and what the future holds.

Contents

• Masuda’s Plan to Revive His Hometown
• Our Guided Walking Tour of Higashi-Iwase

Masuda’s Plan to Revive His Hometown

Masuda begins his explanation, “My friend often says that when he goes to cities in Europe, it’s dirty. But when he comes to Japan, there’s no trash, but the buildings look like trash and it’s not beautiful.” This writer disagrees with that sentiment, but I can see where they’re coming from. You may be familiar with all of the news stories of Japan’s abandoned homes and population decline, which tends to leave buildings and neighborhoods to the elements without caretakers.

Higashi-Iwase could have been part of that akiya phenomenon but for the efforts of Masuda in buying up and rebuilding the empty homes and buildings that line the streets of this town. Instead of allowing them to fall victim to ruin, he converted the buildings, some of which have been around since the Edo period, into something that would attract tenants that would raise the area’s profile as well as contribute to the community. As a result, there are now dozens of buildings that house artist's studios as well as restaurants.

Despite its current renaissance, the history of this town is typical according to Masuda: “It peaked a little bit as a trading post during the kitamaebune period, but it’s not a very special city.” However, he says that this sets a good example for others who want to breathe new life into their hometowns. “It shows that someone like me can do this. Make it a special town for the future, little by little.”

To Masuda, “Each shop is a destination.” And they all work together as a community to increase awareness and even sales, as opposed to treating each other as competitors. “Whenever we go to a restaurant, we use an artist’s tableware. Then when a guest comes, the guest can go to the craftsman, or the craftsman comes to eat there, and that’s how they’re introduced.”

The power of collaboration is alive and well in Masuda’s new Higashi-Iwase, centered around the sake brewer that keeps connecting people. He now counts IWA 5’s Richard Geoffroy as a friend, having helped him learn the sake-making process, as well as helping him get the business set up. In the interview with Geoffroy, he says that Masuda is the only person he could have collaborated with, because of his vision and passion for innovation.

After saying our thanks to the master, we head out with a member of the Masuda Shuzo team to discover some of the places that make this ordinary town so extraordinary.

Our Guided Walking Tour of Higashi-Iwase

Being a community of artists and professionals, many of the showrooms, ateliers, and restaurants are by reservation only. That doesn’t mean there’s not plenty to do and see, as Team Musubi experienced firsthand.

We began our guided walk after the interview with Masuda, starting with the Masuda Shuzo campus. The company does not usually allow tours, and the main office is also available by appointment, only for long-time customers. However, the buildings themselves are stunning backgrounds for photos. The main office is easily spotted with the sugidama hanging outside—a classic marker of a sake brewery. A sugidama is a large ball of Japanese cedar leaves that is hung outside at the beginning of brewing season. The leaves start green and gradually turn brown; once the ball is completely brown, the sake is ready for purchase.

In addition to the sugidama, some of the brewery buildings are decorated with large blue and white murals, reminiscent of sometsuke designs. Add in the old-school facades, accented by boxes of bottles and barrels of sake, and you find yourself transported into the Iwase district of the past.

Our walk continued down a street lined with renovated Edo-period buildings, purchased by Masuda and now home to the aforementioned studios and restaurants. Without appointments we were satisfied to window shop and simply take in the sights. A short jaunt down the road from the main office is the official Masuda Sake Brewery shop, a wide-open wooden structure that houses the Masuizumi lineup, as well as serving as a mini gallery showing off sculptures and pottery from local artists.

We stopped in to see the offerings, housed in a glass-front fridge that spans a large portion of the wall. You can DIY a tasting on the cheap, just ask the shop staff for help. You’ll be able to purchase small cups of sake to try out. Team Musubi was able to try a namazake, unpasteurized sake, produced by Masuda Shuzo, and then took some bottles home as souvenirs of our visit.

Another landmark open to the public is the Baba residence, the largest house in Higashi-Iwase. The Baba family was considered one of the “Five Great Iwase Families” due to their standing as one of the “Five Great Kitamaebune Shipowners” during the merchant ship era. Now serving as an historical landmark to represent the area’s past as a prominent port town, it’s worth visiting to gain some insight into how one of Hokuriku’s most powerful families lived.

However, our destination was not the residence itself, but rather a tucked-away brewpub whose entrance faces the Baba residence’s lush, spacious garden. Inside you can enjoy Czech treats and choose from a variety of beers—we tried a pilsner and an ale, both of which were a refreshing way to wind down our day.

Our final stop on the way out of town was a very private look at Masuda Shuzo’s archive. Behind an unassuming wooden door was a dark, cozy space reminiscent of a cellar, holding decades’ worth of sake dating back to the Showa era (1926 CE–1989 CE). It was an incredible thing to take in, a small portion of the brewery’s long-standing history of innovation and craft throughout five generations.

To bear witness to the transformation of a town that one man spearheaded was an awe-inspiring experience. At the heart of Higashi-Iwase is Masuda Shuzo and its current owner, Masuda Ryuichiro, but his sights are always set on connection. Inside the main office of Masuda Shuzo, a row of unique sake boxes showcases his penchant for partnership, which extends worldwide from Richard Geoffroy’s IWA 5 to Link8, a collaboration with Chivas Regal. In the modern world, a world that seems to increasingly emphasize the individual over the community, seeing the extent of these relationships and what they can create together is inspirational.

The age-old phrase goes, “Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he’ll eat for a lifetime,” but why stop there? Why not make friends with the fisherman who catches the fish, the chefs who prepare the fish, the artisans who make the plates, the brewers who make the sake, and so on…? Then you’ll have a whole community of resources and knowledge to draw upon, and, to quote another old adage, there is strength in numbers.

Through Masuda’s unceasing efforts, Higashi-Iwase’s population will continue to grow, and the resulting success of its residents will be immeasurably strong. It is absolutely worth paying a visit to see for yourself.