Minakuchi Shuzo, founded in 1895 in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, is the only sake brewery in the Dogo Onsen area, Japan's oldest hot spring resort. The Nikitatsu brand takes its name from a verse in the Man'yoshu, Japan's oldest poetry anthology, written by the poet Nukata no Okimi about setting sail from Nikitatsu harbor. Nikitatsu was launched to commemorate the centennial restoration of Dogo Onsen Honkan and has earned seven gold medals at the National New Sake Competition.
