Nagareyama City, also known as ‘the closest forest city from central Tokyo.’ This Japanese city of 200,000 people is located in the northwest part of Chiba Prefecture, just 20 minutes away from central Tokyo by train, and it is known for its beautiful nature and rich history.
Nagareyama City is the birthplace of shiro-mirin, or white mirin, a type of sweet rice wine that was originally consumed as a beverage but is now widely used as an essential condiment in Japanese cooking. The city has thrived through its mirin-brewing industry for over 200 years since the mid-Edo period, and storage buildings with their unique architecture dating back to the Meiji era can still be seen in the streets today.
The Edogawa River flows by the west side of the city, and near the river is the Nagareyama Honcho area. The Tone Canal, which was built in 1890 under the supervision of Dutch engineer Anthonie Rouwenhorst Mulder, runs across the city and connects the Edogawa River with the Tone River to the northeast.