There is a region in Kyoto Prefecture that was once known as ``Tamba no Kuni.'' These include present-day Kameoka City, Nantan City, and Kyotanba Town, all of which are areas with untouched nature, including lush mountains and beautiful rivers. One of the things that people who live alongside this rich natural environment have protected and nurtured is the beautiful scenery of Kayabuki no Sato. The tour toured notable spots in ``Tamba no Kuni'', which has been attracting attention in recent years as ``Kyoto of the Forest,'' including ``Kayabuki no Sato'' and ``Tamba Wine,'' which aims to produce wine that matches Kyoto's food culture.

Miyama Kayabuki no Sato
Thatched-roof houses dotted around the foot of the mountain

Approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes by car from Kyoto Station. Thatched houses are scattered at the foot of the gentle ridges of the mountains. It is ``Miyama Kayabuki no Sato.'' There are a total of 39 thatched houses in this village, which has been selected as a nationally important preservation district for groups of traditional buildings. Many of them were built from the middle of the Edo period to the early Meiji period, and are officially called the ``Kitayama style private house with irimoya-zukuri.''

Walk inside the village. The only primary colors are the red of the mailbox and the apron of the Jizo statue. Everything from the thatched roof to the walls of the building and the hut next to it has a brownish gradation, and the white of the shoji screens stands out. A soft atmosphere that makes everyone who visits feel at ease. It is the atmosphere that gives off the feeling that people are actually still living in these old thatched houses.

A thatched roof with excellent breathability and insulation is a “breathing roof.”

Tadaki Nakano, who runs a guesthouse at Kayabuki no Sato, served as our guide.

"Thatched roof houses are cool in the summer and warm in the winter, and have excellent ventilation and insulation properties, so they are said to be ``breathing roofs.'' Roofs are replaced about once every 20 years. All the work used to be done by everyone, but gradually the number of people working has decreased, and recently we have started relying on specialized craftsmen."

Kayabuki no Sato has avoided building commercial facilities within the village as much as possible, and there are only a few cafes and guesthouses. For this reason, the village as a whole retains its traditional appearance. The village is surrounded by rice paddies and buckwheat fields. Rice is planted in spring, and buckwheat flowers bloom in September. The thatched roofs have continued to watch over these seasonal changes. The original Japanese landscape that once existed everywhere in Japan is definitely preserved here.

Miyama FUTON & Breakfast
Limited to 1 group per day. Stay in a thatched house

There is a futon and breakfast inn near Kayabuki no Sato, which is not just a bed and breakfast. Miyama FUTON & Breakfast is an inn with breakfast included, where you can rent out an entire thatched-roof house to just one group per day. There are currently 1 accommodation facilities scattered throughout the area. They vary in taste and capacity, from old folk houses that retain their traditional appearance to modern buildings with large gardens and wooden terraces.

Among them, “MiyamaFUTON&Breakfast The building, named ``Main Building,'' is a thatched-roof building that is over 150 years old and has been designated as a registered tangible cultural property of the country. Passing through the dirt floor, you will find yourself in a wide board room with a hearth cut out in the center where you can light a fire. There are mainly two tatami rooms, one 8 tatami mats and one 4 and a half tatami mats in size, but if you partition them with sliding doors, you can have three rooms.

Dinner to enjoy freely at a thatched accommodation
We can also arrange ingredients and cook on-site.

The second floor, where the roof is covered with thatched grass and the beams that support it are exposed, has a rustic yet unique atmosphere that makes you realize that this is a traditional thatched house.

The attractive feature is that it is spacious enough to accommodate 8 or more people in some cases. The kitchen is fully equipped with the latest plumbing and cooking utensils, and there are plenty of tableware, so you can cook your own meals. It's also great that you can make reservations for ingredients for barbecue and Botan nabe.

There is also an on-site service that prepares Yose nabe and Botan nabe right next to the irori hearth, making your dream of sitting around the irori hearth come true.

The building is surrounded by only private houses and rice fields that are a little apart. If you sit by the hearth and listen carefully, you can almost feel the breath of the thatched roof. It is about 15 minutes by car from Kayabuki no Sato. If you want to enjoy Miyama, where traditional scenery remains, you'll want to spend the night at an inn like this.

Kigusuriya
Gibier Kaiseki and Botan Nabe at a small family-run inn

"Kigsuriya". A culinary inn with such an unusual name is hanging its curtains in the Miyama area. Founded in 8. This inn retains its name as a ``Medicine shop'', which ran a medicine business during the Meiji period.

A new idea for ``Gibier Kaiseki'' using deer and boar meat.

Kigusuriya, a small, family-run inn, is known for its dishes that make use of Miyama's seasonal ingredients, and its homely feel attracts many people from not only Kyoto but from all over the country. Ayu sweetfish in the summer, botan nabe in the winter, local chicken dishes all year round... In addition to these traditional dishes, gibier kaiseki has recently been attracting attention.

When we adopted the idea of ​​``game meat'' from French cuisine instead of the limited cooking methods used up until now, such as cooking in a pot or boiling, deer and boar meat, which was sometimes difficult to handle, was transformed into a rich ingredient. It has come to be endowed with great value. Deer meat can be made into cutlets, boiled in wine, or croquettes, and wild boar can be made into bacon and used as a topping for salads. As a result of inviting a French chef who specializes in French cuisine and holding study sessions with the chefs from the Miyama area, a truly ``local production for local consumption'' specialty was born.

Of course, the traditional botan nabe and sweetfish raised in the clear waters of the Yura River are also delicious. In the spring of this year, renovation work on the annex, which is an old private house built in 13, will be completed. The painstakingly prepared food you can enjoy under the thatched roof is exceptional. A blissful time passes.

Kyoto Tamba wine
A winery founded in Tamba with the aim of producing wine that goes well with Japanese cuisine.

Kyotamba Town is located to the west of the Miyama district of Nantan City, where Kayabuki no Sato and Kigusuriya are located. ``Tamba Wine'' is a winery with a vast vineyard of 18,000 tsubo in Kyotanba. A winery was established in 1979 in this area, which is suitable for growing grapes, with extensive soil rich in nutrients and large temperature differences between day and night in the summer.

Since then, the winery has aimed to produce wine that goes well with Japanese cuisine, and today the winery has become a winery whose products are widely loved at restaurants and restaurants all over Japan, including Kyoto Prefecture. Currently, there are over 2 brands of wine made mainly by two female winemakers.

The winery's landscape, surrounded by gently undulating countryside, is reminiscent of the French countryside, and around 50 varieties of grapes are planted there, including cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, and pinot noir, including trial cultivation. There is. Harvest is from mid-August to late October. The vineyards are at their most beautiful from late May, when the grape leaves turn dark green, until the end of harvest.

Tastings and BBQ. A fulfilling day spent at a winery

The restaurant ``duTamba'' located inside the winery has tables set at a height where you can clearly see the grape bunches from the window, so you can enjoy the view of the fields while eating.

Additionally, from April to November, there is a plan to enjoy a barbecue in the fields. Tastings are also available at the shop that sells wine and food exclusive to the winery. Farm and winery tours are also held from time to time, so you can spend a fulfilling day.

An area known as ``Kyoto of the Forest'' where rich nature remains. Coexistence with this rich natural environment has fostered unique cultures and products such as thatched houses, game cuisine, and wineries. This is the best season for driving, so why not take a trip through the "Forests of Kyoto" and experience for yourself the coexistence with nature?