The first thing most people think when they hear "fireworks festival" is summer. Yukata, humidity, cicadas singing into the dusk. However, on November 23rd, when most of Japan has packed away its hanabi for the year, Nagano City hosts one of the country's most unusual celebrations: a sake festival set against the backdrop of an autumn fireworks display.
What to Expect during the Shinshu Sake Festival
The Shinshu Sake Festival takes place at Nagano Station East Exit Park, part of the larger Ebisu-ko YOIMIYA celebration that precedes the famous Ebisu-ko Fireworks Display. While many people gather to watch pyrotechnics light up the crisp November sky, a smaller crowd congregates at the park to sample what Nagano does best: sake.
Eleven breweries from the area gather here, each pouring two varieties of their work. Twenty-two different sake, ranging from clean and delicate to rich and robust, all in one place. The event runs from mid-afternoon into the evening, and by the time the first rockets go up around 6 PM, the park has settled into lively conversation, shouts of "kanpai", and laughter.
Warmed Sake to fight the chilly temps
What makes this event worth noting is the warmed sake. Each brewery offers one of its two selections heated (kan), which is less common at tasting events, Kan fell out of fashion for a while, associated with cheap sake that needed masking. But in recent years, brewers and drinkers alike have rediscovered that sake, warmed to the right temperature, opens up in ways cold sake never does. Flavors deepen. Aromas soften and expand.
Nagano ranks second in Japan for number of sake breweries, with around 80 scattered across a prefecture that stretches from alpine valleys to highland basins. The geography matters. Cold winters, snowmelt water from the Japan Alps, and high-altitude brewing conditions produce sake with a particular character. Some are lean and crisp, suited to the region's fermented foods and mountain vegetables. Others carry more weight, with earthy or nutty notes that pair well with heartier fare.
Sake and More
The festival doesn't just offer tastings. Food stalls and a show for kids occupy one part of the park and an area for those who bring picnic tents or blankets for the evening's festivities. The whole setup feels less like a promotional event and more like a neighborhood gathering that happens to feature excellent sake. People move between booths, comparing notes, asking questions, going back for seconds of something that surprised them.
Late November in Nagano means temperatures hovering around 5°C after dark. The chill makes kan not just appealing but practical. Holding a warm cup while waiting for the next burst of fireworks is the kind of small comfort that defines the experience. The festival acknowledges this by making kan a centerpiece rather than an afterthought.
For those unfamiliar with sake, this event offers an excellent introduction to the world of sake. Brewers or representatives from each brewery are on hand to explain what you're drinking, why it was made that way, and what it might pair with. You can try a ‘ginjo’ with floral notes, then shift to a ‘junmai’ with more pronounced rice character, then sample something aged that tastes nothing like either.
The Ebisu-ko connection adds context. Ebisu, one of Japan's Seven Gods of Fortune, is associated with commerce and prosperity. The festival at Nishimiya Shrine, held a few days before the fireworks, has been a fixture in Nagano since the Edo period, marking the transition into winter and the wrapping up of the agricultural year. The fireworks followed in 1899, originally as a commercial promotion to draw crowds. Over a century later, the tradition persists, and the sake festival has found its place within it.
This isn't a sommelier-led tasting with numbered glasses and structured pairings. It's people trying sake, eating something warm from a food stall, and watching fireworks in weather that would send most festival-goers indoors. That combination of elements, the cold, the crowd, the light show overhead, turns this sake tasting into something special.
Explore Nagano's Sake Scene Year-Round
If the Shinshu Sake Festival sparks your interest in Nagano's brewing traditions, consider exploring the region's sake culture more deeply. Our guided sake brewery tour takes you behind the scenes at a former sake brewery, where you'll learn about the brewing process, the role of Nagano's mountain water and rice, and the craftsmanship that goes into each bottle. The tour includes a tasting session led by brewery staff, offering insight into how different brewing methods and ingredients shape flavor.
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