Nishiyama Shuzojo, established in 1849 in Ichijima, Tanba, Hyogo Prefecture, takes its Kotsuzumi brand name from a haiku term coined by the celebrated poet Kyoshi Takahama, who mentored the brewery's third and fourth generations and helped publicize the sake in the literary magazine Hototogisu. The house motto, not a sake to taste once and forget but one to return to for a lifetime, reflects a philosophy of depth over spectacle. The brewery brews year-round using soft well water from the Tsubaki spring and locally grown rice varieties including Yamada Nishiki, Hyogo Kitanishiki, and Tajima Goriki.
