Standing in the heart of Tamashima, Kurashiki City, Haguro Shrine has watched over the Tamashima area since 1658.
An event will be held in the grounds of historic Haguro Shrine, where you can enjoy delicious drinks while spending a relaxing moment. A full lineup of local eateries will be setting up stalls—places you rarely see at events.
What exactly will this food and drink festival at a shrine be like?
Here’s a look at “Kenshusai (Sake Offering Festival),” a first for Haguro Shrine.
The information presented here was current when this article was published in November 2025. Please note that it may differ from current information.
What Is the Kenshusai?
The Kenshusai is an event to be held at Haguro Shrine on Monday, November 24, 2025 (a national holiday).
With the theme “Give thanks to nature and enjoy the times we live in,” you can enjoy carefully selected drinks and food from local eateries. A ceremony to offer sake to the gods in gratitude for nature’s blessings is also scheduled for the day.
Seven businesses will set up stalls, including places you rarely see at events.
- Tamashima Bar BRUNO
A casual bar beloved by locals, specializing in natural wines - Goike Bar
A long-established bar in Tamashima serving high-quality drinks with rich flavors - GRAPE SHIP
A natural winery using Muscat of Alexandria grapes - Minamida Butcher Shop
A long-established butcher shop committed to raising calves at its own ranch - Kurashiki Sake Shop Itokichi
A wine shop in the Bikan Historical Area, Kurashiki, offering a carefully selected range of wines - Kimuraya
A restaurant serving a wide range of cuisines, mainly Chinese and ethnic dishes, full of creativity - GJG ESPRESSO STORE
A coffee shop where you can enjoy richly flavored, house-roasted coffee
You can purchase non-alcoholic drinks as well as alcoholic beverages. There will also be a kids’ activity area, making this a festival the whole family can enjoy.
The Kenshusai will be held at Haguro Shrine for the first time. How did the idea for a food and drink event organized by a shrine come about?
We spoke with the organizer, Haguro Shrine’s deputy chief priest Fukuda Masatoshi, and Nagao Kotaro of Tamashima Bar BRUNO, who is helping run the event.
Interview with the Organizers
What inspired you to organize the Kenshusai?
Fukuda (surname only hereafter)
Since long ago, many festivals have been held at shrines to give thanks for nature’s blessings.
People in the food and drink business do wonderful work, handling seafood and agricultural products and delivering them to many people in different forms. We hoped to let them know about ceremonies that give thanks to nature and give them an opportunity to feel closer to the blessings of the gods. That led to this collaboration with local eateries.
Also, shrines were once places where people in the community gathered and relaxed. These days, however, there are few reasons to visit other than to pray, and I personally feel a little sad about that.
So, with the hope that shrines will once again become places where people gather, we planned an event to bring people in the community together. I hope you’ll also enjoy discovering new eateries.
It seems unusual for a food and drink event to be held at a shrine. How did the two of you come to work together?
Fukuda
I’m a fan of Tamashima Bar BRUNO and often went there with friends, which is how I got to know Nagao.
Nagao is a wonderful person and someone I trust, so when I told him, “I’d like to try something like this at Haguro Shrine,” he encouraged me, saying, “Let’s do it.”
Nagao (surname only hereafter)
I thought the Kenshusai was a festival held regularly at shrines, so I was surprised to learn this would be the first one. It feels like the two of us took the idea Fukuda brought to me and made it happen together.
How were the participating eateries selected?
Nagao
We wanted eateries that are close to the shrine and care about the local community in their everyday lives to take part.
For example, eateries in the Kurashiki area near Achi Shrine include people who make a first-of-the-month shrine visit and people who hope that “the shrine will be a place of comfort and support.”
The participating eateries care about the community, including its shrines, and share the organizers’ vision.
I also invited eateries and liquor stores that I personally admire.
What meaning is behind the name Kenshusai?
Fukuda
Shrines have a ceremony called Kenchasai (Tea Offering Festival).
Tea is prepared in front of the gods and offered to them. We came up with the name “Kenshusai” by replacing the tea offered in this ceremony with sake.
Sake is often offered to the gods during ceremonies, but I think it’s unusual for a shrine event centered on sake to be held as part of an everyday festival.
What will be the highlight of this event?
Fukuda
I hope visitors will enjoy the peaceful atmosphere unique to a shrine and experience a calm setting that’s different from summer and autumn festivals.
Haguro Shrine is also a place where the sunset is exceptionally beautiful. Please enjoy the beautiful sunset along with delicious food.
Nagao
Every business is serving carefully selected drinks and dishes, so I hope you’ll enjoy trying the offerings from a variety of places.
Can people who don’t drink alcohol enjoy the event too?
Fukuda
Yes. We’ll have non-alcoholic drinks available, so people who don’t drink alcohol and children are welcome to come along.
We’re also planning a kids’ activity area, with help from a Community Revitalization Cooperator.
What kind of experience do you hope visitors will have?
Fukuda
Since this festival is being held in the special setting of a shrine, I hope you’ll spend a relaxing moment enjoying drinks in a peaceful atmosphere.
Finally, do you have a message for our readers?
Fukuda
The businesses taking part are local places that I personally visit as a fan. They’re all run by wonderful people, and of course the food and drinks are delicious.
All of our staff will do their best to make sure you have a great time, so please come along. We hope to enjoy a wonderful time with everyone, including the vendors and event staff.
Nagao
The Kenshusai is an event that reflects the organizers’ care for the community, and the participating eateries share that vision. They’re all special places that don’t often set up stalls at events.
The event brings together makers who “want local people to enjoy what they create,” so please come and savor the unique flavors at the Kenshusai.
From the Writer
You may not often have a reason to visit a shrine other than to pray or sightsee. Reporting this story made me want to support Haguro Shrine’s efforts to become a place where the community can gather and relax.
I think what makes this festival at Haguro Shrine special is that it’s not just a fun event where you can drink—it also includes a proper expression of gratitude to the gods.
All seven participating businesses are said to offer menus full of carefully crafted items, so it would be great to try something from every stall.
For the latest event information, check out Haguro Shrine’s Instagram.
Sake Offering Festival Information
| Name | Sake Offering Festival |
|---|---|
| Date | Monday, November 24, 2025 (national holiday) 2:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. |
| Location | 1-12-1 Tamashima Chuo-cho, Kurashiki City, Okayama Prefecture |
| Website | Haguro Shrine Instagram |
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