Kanpai Meets Japan

Name: Kanpai Meets Japan
Address: 1-59-8, 赤羽, Kita-ku, Tokyo, 115-0045, JP
Telephone: +81368207348

ホーム
日本
Kita-ku, Tokyo
Kanpai Meets Japan

Kanpai Meets Japan creates meaningful journeys through rural Japan. Travel through human connection.

Share meals, drinks, stories, and everyday life with local people — from sake brewers and farmers to artisans and community hosts.

30/10/2026

Have you ever tried bringing a Japanese puppet to life?

In Hachioji, Tokyo, we stepped into the fascinating world of Kuruma Ningyo, a traditional Japanese puppetry art where a single puppeteer brings a character to life.

But the best part? We didn't just watch! We met the people keeping this tradition alive, learned their techniques, and even tried moving the puppets ourselves. It looks easy… until you try it! 😆

A little laughter, a lot of discovery, and a special connection with the people behind the tradition. That's what Kanpai Meets Japan is all about!

Discover the experience through the link in our bio.

30/09/2026

A few days in Nihonmatsu, meeting local people, sharing meals, making wagashi, visiting a sake brewery, and enjoying everyday life together.

What makes a journey memorable is not only where you go, but who you meet along the way.

Meet Japan through its people. Kanpai Meets Japan

18/09/2026

Two women. Two different paths. One table in rural Japan.

In Tokamachi, Niigata—around two hours from Tokyo—you’ll meet Misako and Chiho.

Misako runs a farmhouse inn, farms, hunts, and works with wild game. Chiho followed a different path, eventually turning her love of craft b**r into Tsumari B**r.

Over two days, you’ll step into both of their worlds—visit the brewery, spend time at Kayaya, share wild game and local b**r, and experience the everyday rhythm of life in Tokamachi.

There is no formal presentation and no staged cultural show. Just food, b**r, conversation, laughter, and time together.

Want to know more? Find the full journey through the link in our bio.

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14/09/2026

Raise a glass with the people of Namie. 🍶

On November 1–2, 2026, join a two-day small-group journey built around the Namie Harvest Festival. Taste local food and sake, meet one of the producers behind the festival, visit Suzuki Sake Brewery, and gather around the table with local residents.

You’ll also explore Namie with sake brewer Daisuke Suzuki, who resumed brewing in his hometown ten years after his family brewery was destroyed in 2011. Through his memories and personal story, discover Namie’s past, present, and the people shaping its future.

This journey is shared with Japanese participants, with an English-speaking interpreter accompanying you throughout both days. JR Namie Station is about 3.5 hours from Tokyo by direct limited express train—no transfers required.

📅 November 1–2, 2026 📍 Namie, Fukushima 🛏 2 days / 1 night 🗣 English interpretation included

Tour details and booking requests are available through the link in our profile.

09/09/2026

Thinking about starting your own craft brewery, but not sure where to begin?

Meet Itsuo Yamaguchi, founder of Iwami Bakushu in Shimane, Japan. 🍺

Itsuo developed his own approach to small-scale brewing, known as the “Iwami Method.” Instead of relying on large, expensive brewing systems, his approach makes it
possible to start small—and has helped inspire and support small breweries across Japan.

This two-day experience takes you inside Itsuo’s actual brewery. Rather than simply taking a tour, you’ll join the work based on the brewery’s production schedule and see firsthand how a small craft brewery operates.

Ask about the equipment, brewing process, starting a brewery, running the business, and the lessons Itsuo has learned along the way. And in the evening, sit down together over dinner and, of course, a few b**rs. 🍻

For anyone seriously thinking about entering the craft b**r business, this is a chance to turn “maybe someday” into something a little more real.

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04/09/2026

What if you didn’t just watch a Japanese festival — but became part of it?

Every December, the small community of Kohata in Fukushima comes together for the Kohata Banner Festival, a tradition that has continued for around 1,000 years.

This year, we’re inviting just a few travelers to step inside that tradition.

Spend the first day alongside local people, helping prepare the colorful banners, sharing food and conversation, and staying overnight at a local farmhouse inn.

For male participants who wish to join, the evening also includes mizugori — a traditional cold-water purification ritual.

The next morning, dress in white, shoulder a banner, and walk approximately 5 km through the countryside together with the community toward Okitsushima Shrine.

This isn’t a festival you simply come to see.

You prepare together. You walk together. You eat and drink together.

And for two days, you become part of a tradition that local people have carried forward for generations.

📍 Kohata, Nihonmatsu, Fukushima 📅 December 5–6, 2026 👥 Maximum 6 travelers

Come not just to see rural Japan. Come and be part of it.

26/08/2026

An evening with Tomoko in rural Fukushima.

When you arrive, the first thing you hear is simple: “Tea first?” That’s how an evening at Seihōen begins.

After a cup of tea and a little time to settle in, it’s off to gather vegetables for dinner. Back in the kitchen, you offer to help. “Then you can start with the dango.”

Before you know it, you’re preparing dinner together.

Nothing here feels like a scheduled activity. It’s simply everyday life — cooking, talking, laughing, and sharing the kitchen as the evening unfolds.

It somehow feels a little like coming home.

And when dinner is ready, everyone gathers around the same table. With Tomoko’s smile, good food, local sake, and plenty of laughter, the line between host and guest quietly disappears.

Just people sharing an evening together.

KANPAI. 🍻

10/08/2026

What if your trip to Japan wasn't about checking places off a list?

In Sakuho, Nagano, you can meet the people behind everyday life in rural Japan.

Meet a sake brewer. Walk through an orchard with local farmers. Visit a fish farm fed by the pure waters of the Yatsugatake Mountains.

And at the end of the day, gather around the same table to share food, sake, stories, and a few laughs.

No rushing from one sightseeing spot to the next. Just time with local people.

This is one of the journeys we create at Kanpai Meets Japan.

Come for Japan. Remember the people.

06/08/2026

People I Keep Coming Back For

Whenever I visit Dake Onsen in Fukushima, there's one place I always return to.

It's a small local izakaya called Yorozuya, run by the Taira family.

The menu isn't designed for tourists. Homemade salt-seasoned pork stew, gyoza, fried chicken...

Simple, everyday dishes that local people have loved for years. Somehow, that's exactly what makes them special.

Inside, locals and travelers from around the world naturally end up sharing the same table, raising a glass together, and becoming friends.

Sometimes it's hard to tell whether Mr. Taira is serving customers or simply enjoying a drink with everyone. 😂

If you're lucky, you'll also catch a live performance by the Taira brothers, who are talented musicians as well.

In the end, I don't come here just for the food.

I come back to see the Taira family.

       

15/07/2026

Whenever I visit Namie, there's one place I always stop by.

Once, I arrived on a day when the shop was closed.

"I was hoping to take some fresh surf clams home."

"How many do you need?"

With that, Mr. Shiba opened the shop just for me and prepared them on the spot.

Whenever we visit with a Kanpai Meets Japan group, he also prepares fresh flounder sashimi especially for us. It's the perfect way to begin our KANPAI together.

That's why I keep coming back.

At first, I thought it was for the incredible seafood.

But really...

I'm coming back to see Mr. Shiba.

Mr. Shiba Shibae Suisan, Namie, Fukushima