The Sake Anatomy › Sake Brand Index › Chiebijin
No.147 · Brewery Profile
Chiebijin智恵美人 · Nakano Shuzo 中野酒造
Nakano Shuzo is a small, family-run kura in the castle town of Kitsuki, drawing brewing water from roughly 200 meters underground and brewing without added alcohol or sugar across its standard junmai range. The brand name honors Chie, wife of the brewery’s first-generation owner, and comes in two parallel labels — the kanji-written 智恵美人 for local distribution and a hiragana ちえびじん tokutei meishoshu line aimed at wider and export markets.
Who makes Chiebijin?
Nakano Shuzo is a small, family-run kura in the castle town of Kitsuki, Oita, founded in 1874, drawing brewing water from roughly 200 meters underground. The brand name honors Chie, wife of the brewery’s first-generation owner, and the sake comes in two parallel labels — kanji-written for local distribution and a hiragana tokutei meishoshu line aimed at wider and export markets.
What does Chiebijin taste like?
Tagged Rich & Umami and Acidity-driven, brewed without added alcohol or sugar. The Chiebijin Junmai-shu, made with Hattan Nishiki rice, rates 4/5 on acidity with SMV -2.0; the Chiebijin Junmai Ginjo Namajuku, unpasteurized and matured, offers a fresher, more layered style at SMV ±0 with the same 4/5 acidity.
Which bottle should you try first?
Start with the Chiebijin Junmai-shu, the additive-free standard release, before the unpasteurized, more layered Junmai Ginjo Namajuku.
How does Chiebijin compare to other Oita breweries?
Oita’s only other listed brewery, Nishinoseki, is tagged Elegant & Refined and Aromatic & Fruity. Chiebijin sits at the richer, more acid-driven end of Oita’s range, tagged Rich & Umami and Acidity-driven instead.
Frequently asked questions
What does the name Chiebijin honor?
Chie, the wife of the brewery’s first-generation owner.
What are Chiebijin’s two label variants?
A kanji-written label (智恵美人) for local distribution and a hiragana tokutei meishoshu line aimed at wider and export markets.
Where does Nakano Shuzo get its brewing water?
From roughly 200 meters underground.
The bottles
Chiebijin Junmai-shu智恵美人 純米酒
醇酒 Junshu · Rich“Additive-free junmai made with Hattan Nishiki rice.”
Chiebijin Junmai Ginjo Namajukuちえびじん 純米吟醸 生熟
熟酒 Jukushu · Aged“Unpasteurized and matured — a fresher, more layered style than the standard line.”
Reading the bars: an editorial flavor reading (0–5) of each bottle — Dry→Rich, Light→Full, Subtle→Aromatic, Low→High acidity — not laboratory values. The colored badge is the SSI four-type classification (薫酒 Kunshu · 爽酒 Soshu · 醇酒 Junshu · 熟酒 Jukushu). SMV and acidity appear only where the brewery publishes them.
Sources: chiebijin.com · oita-sake.or.jp · jizake.com