

Matazaemon Nakano I
1756-1828 (Aged 72)

INTRODUCTION
He saw the potential of sushi and began the full-scale brewing of sake lees vinegar. With a daring attitude, the challenger started the business which we now know as the Mizkan Group.


Matazaemon I was born in 1756 as the eldest son of the Kizaemon Oguri family.
At the age of 20, he was asked to be the guardian of the young successor to the Hanzaemon Nakano family, a leading sake brewer in Chita County’s Handa Village. He was adopted into the family and looked after the Hanzaemon family business for over 20 years.
After making sure his successor was ready, Matazaemon I branched out and set up his own business in 1804. In autumn of that year, he set off for Edo (Tokyo).
When Matazaemon I arrived in Edo, he encountered sushi, which was starting to become popular. This was “hannare,” the prototype of modern sushi.
Hannare is a type of sushi that bridges the gap between long-fermented “narezushi” and “hayazushi” (fast sushi). Narezushi, the earliest form of sushi, is made by fermenting salted fish in rice and letting lactic acid break down the fish, with the entire process taking over a year. In contrast, hannare pressed sushi has a shorter fermentation period due to the addition of vinegar.

Matazaemon I founded the Matazaemon Nakano family business, which would later become the Mizkan Group. In addition to his sake brewing business, he began producing vinegar using sake lees.
At the time, it was completely inconceivable for a sake brewer to make vinegar, because acetic acid bacteria contamination would turn sake into vinegar.
Despite being fully aware of the risks, Matazaemon I made sake lees vinegar. He was confident that his sweet and umami-rich vinegar would be ideal for the sushi.
Upon his return to Handa, he immediately began full-scale vinegar production, anticipating large demand in Edo.
This episode demonstrates how the history of sushi and the history of Mizkan are deeply intertwined.

Taking advantage of the Chita County's shipping capabilities and sales routes cultivated through sake production, Matazaemon I shipped sake lees vinegar to Edo.
His sake lees vinegar eventually came to be used in well-known sushi restaurants in Edo. It is no exaggeration to say that the origins of the Mizkan Group lie in the good fortune of Matazaemon I, who took advantage of the popularity of hannare (and later hayazushi), and his daring attitude.
In 1816, Matazaemon I handed over the management of the vinegar business to the 25-year old Tazo, and had him take the name Suya (vinegar shop) Kanjiro. Matazaemon I took on the name Masukuraya Sanroku and devoted himself to sake brewing.
When he handed over the family business, Matazaemon I entrusted to his successor an eight-point list conveying the mindset required for business management and family leadership. “A family business can only succeed with the support of the people around us, including our forebears and family members.”
This message continues to live on as the Nakano family motto to this day.

- ・Have faith in the gods
- ・Do not forget to commemorate your ancestors on anniversaries
- ・Be especially careful with fire, and carry out routine inspections of the brewery and boilers
- ・Never be unkind to others, including the employees
- ・Ensure matrimonial harmony
- ・Do not neglect the Hanroku family or the main family (Hanzaemon family)
- ・Do what you can to appoint a relative as the successor of the Oguri family
- ・Please provide an allowance of seven ryo and two bu of gold coins twice a year while my wife and I are alive


