If you’ve ever visited a sake brewery in Japan, you would have seen these spheres of leaves hanging by the entrance. They are called sugidama (杉玉) and are made with the leaves of the sugi tree (commonly called “Japanese cedar” but more correctly, “cryptomeria”).
Sake brewery entrance.
The sign says: “God of Sake, Miwa-Myojin.
Traditionally, the sugidama leaves come from the cryptomeria trees growing in the Oomiwa Shrine (大神神社) in Nara Prefecture. The shrine is located on Mt. Miwa, the sacred mountain where Miwa-Myojin (三輪明神), the god of sake, resides. Sake breweries display the fresh sugidama when the first batch of sake is pressed. So, a green sugidama announces that fresh sake (like shiboritate) is coming. In time, they will turn brown…and that may be the sign that the aged sake (like hiyaoroshi) are ready!
Nowadays, when you see a sugidama outside an establishment, it means sake is brewed, sold, or served there!
Niigata Prefecture is one of the places in Japan famous for its sake. You can visit a brewery for a guided tour. One place that gives brewery tours (and tasting in the end!) is the Imayo Tsukasa Sake Brewery (今代司). This brewery was founded in 1767. Guided tours in Japanese are free. The English tour costs 400 JPY (as of Jun 25, 2023). More info here.
Imayo Tsukasa Sake Brewery
The traditional vats are also made from sugi wood.
Bonus pics. A display of Niigata sake at Nagaoka Station.
Sake barrels.