Located in western Japan, Shodoshima is an island of natural beauty and stunning sea views in the Seto Inland Sea. Traditional cultures abound on Shodoshima - a food industry centered on soy sauce, tsukudani and olives, an 88 temple pilgrimage, a drum festival and rural kabuki, to name but a few. In recent years, the Setouchi Islands, site of the Setouchi Triennale art festival, were ranked among the 52 Places to Go in 2019 by the New York Times.
About Takesan Group
Bringing the best of Japanese tastes to your table
Takesan Group specializes in the production and sale of soy sauce, soy sauce-based seasonings, tsukudani (food preserved by boiling in soy sauce), various food products, Shodoshima somen noodles and Sanuki udon noodles. Underlying all Takesan products is a wealth of accumulated skills in traditional soy sauce brewing and a dedication to the creation of delicious products. We are committed to manufacturing a variety of products, including private label products, using expertise that maximizes a wide range of high quality ingredients.
Going forward, we will continue to leverage the development and manufacturing knowhow that we have built up since the company was founded in 1945 to bring safe, delicious products to your table.
About Shodoshima Soy Sauce
Shodoshima has a long and proud tradition of producing soy sauce dating back over 400 years. The island had a flourishing salt industry around that time and it is said that the captain of a ship carrying salt from Shodoshima to the Osaka area brought back the techniques for making soy sauce. A number of factors propelled the development of Shodoshima’s soy sauce industry, including large quantities of good quality salt, a warm climate suited to fermentation of the koji (rice malt) essential for soy sauce production and a flourishing sea trade that facilitated the transport of soybeans and wheat, the two other main ingredients.
Around 1877 there were about 400 soy sauce brewers on Shodoshima. Soy sauce is still made in the traditional way today, centered on an area of the island known as Hishio no Sato or Soy Sauce Village.
About KISHIBORI History
In the 1970s, there were many inexpensive soy sauces made with low-cost ingredients available in Japan.
The traditionally made soy sauce, full of umami and aroma, slowly brewed in wooden barrels, so-called "top-quality soy sauce," was almost non-existent.
“We want to make delicious soy sauce again like the old days using wooden barrels that have been used for over 100 years”.
With this mission in mind, the second CEO of our company developed and launched a line of soy sauce products, maximizing the umami of the ingredients without any use of artificial preservatives or sweeteners after fully fermented in the wooden barrels.
That is how "Kishibori”Soy Sauce was created.
The keys to Kishibori Soy Sauce are to use no preservatives or sweeteners, to age soy sauce in the traditional way in wooden barrels, and to carefully pack each bottle in a special wrapping paper.
The special flavor of this freshly pressed soy sauce is expressed in its full-bodied taste, beautiful color, and rich aroma.
Upon its launch, Kishibori Soy Sauce has been sold in many of Japan's leading department stores and supermarkets.
The sauce is also available to all global customers since we started sales overseas around 1990.
KISHIBORI LINEUP
SOY SAUCE
生搾醤油
KIshibori Soy Sauce is made by pressing the mash slowly matured in wooden barrels on Shodoshima island of Japan with mild climate.
The keys to Kishibori Soy Sauce are to use no artificial preservatives or sweeteners, to age soy sauce in the traditional way in wooden barrels, and to carefully pack each bottle in a special wrapping paper.
The special flavor of this freshly pressed soy sauce is expressed in its full-bodied taste, beautiful color, and rich aroma.
Enjoy its delicate flavor on its own. Or you can also enjoy its enhanced roasty aroma by pouring the sauce over grilled beef or chicken, or using it on fish or fried rice dishes.
ORGANIC SOY SAUCE
有機醤油
Soy sauce is produced with soybeans, wheat, salt, and water.
This organic soy sauce is made with organic soybeans and organic wheat, and aged and pressed in wooden barrels that have been in use for over 100 years in our hygienically well-controlled factory.
Without the use of artificial preservatives or sweeteners, organic soy sauce is fermented as naturally as possible in the wooden barrels, giving it a full-bodied taste, beautiful color, and rich aroma.
Enjoy its delicate flavor on its own. Or you can also enjoy its enhanced roasty aroma by pouring this organic sauce over grilled beef or chicken, or using it on fish dishes.
DOUBLE-FERMENTED SOY SAUCE
再仕込み醤油
Soy sauce is brewed with soybeans, wheat, salt, and water. The double-fermented soy sauce, or Saishikomi Soy Sauce, does not use water but instead, goes through a fermentation and maturing process using once already fermented raw soy sauce pressed from the mash.
Normal traditional fermentation process for soy sauce in wooden barrels takes over a year, but this special soy sauce takes two years or more.
Takesan makes sure to take time to slowly bring out the umami of the soybeans and wheat.
Saishikomi Soy Sauce has a more striking flavor than any other sauces.
Its full-bodied and strong flavor goes well with meat and fish dishes.
You can also enjoy its enhanced roasty aroma by cooking it on a stove.
GLUTEN-FREE SOY SAUCE
たまり醤油
Typically soy sauce is made from soybeans, wheat, salt, and water.
This Tamari Soy Sauce is slightly different; it is gluten-free, using soybeans, salt, and water only, and no wheat used as its ingredients.
This soy sauce is pressed in a hygienically well-controlled factory in Japan, and then slowly aged for a long time in traditional wooden barrels that have been used for over 100 years.
Compared to regular soy sauce, Tamari Soy Sauce is thicker and richer in umami, flavor, and color, and goes well with meat and fish dishes.
You can also enjoy its enhanced roasty aroma by cooking it on a stove.
JAPANESE SALAD DRESSING
和風ドレッシング
This soy sauce-flavored dressing is based on our main product, "Kishibori Soy Sauce". KIshibori Soy Sauce is made by pressing the mash slowly matured in wooden barrels on Shodoshima island of Japan with mild climate. This soy sauce is then mixed with onions, vegetable oil, and other ingredients to create a soy sauce-based Japanese dressing.
The richness of the soy sauce and the flavor of the onions make this dressing a perfect accompaniment to salads, beef, grilled chicken, carpaccio, and many other dishes. You can also enjoy its enhanced roasty aroma unique to Kishibori Soy Sauce by cooking it on a stove.
