Sake
Japanese Sake
It is believed that production of sake in Japan dates back to the third century BC. Today, sake is defined by the Japanese Government as an alcoholic beverage containing between 1 and 22% alcohol, produced using rice, rice koji and water, and has a production process involving the pressing/filtering of mash.
The national beverage of Japan, sake (pronounced “sah-KAY,” but usually called something more like “sockey” by Americans), is a fermented rice beverage — typically referred to as a rice wine — that has been enjoyed since at least the 8th century, though some historians believe it was consumed hundreds of years earlier.