Hon-Mirin vs. Mirin-Style Seasoning and Fermented Seasoning: History, Liquor Tax, Does Alcohol Burn Off When Heated?, Ingredients and Sugar, How to Choose

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On the seasoning shelf of a Japanese supermarket, you will see bottles with very similar names: “本みりん” (hon-mirin, or true mirin), “みりん風調味料” (mirin-style seasoning), “みりんタイプ” (mirin type) and “発酵調味料” (fermented seasoning). The prices differ, whether they contain alcohol differs, and even the shelf they sit on differs.

You also often hear stories and assumptions like these.

• “Hon-mirin is made only from glutinous rice, rice koji and shochu.”
• “Mirin-style seasoning is cheap and bad for your health.”
• “Heating burns off all the alcohol, so it is fine to cook with for children.”
• “Fermented seasoning (mirin type) adds salt to get around liquor tax.”
• “The real hon-mirin has more careful labeling.”

In this article, we check the following against laws, National Tax Agency (NTA) documents, MEXT’s food composition tables and research papers.

• When and where did mirin first appear? Why did a drink become a seasoning?
• How do hon-mirin, mirin-style seasoning and fermented seasoning differ in how they are made, in law, in tax and in where they are sold?
• What must, and need not, be written on a “本みりん” label?
• How much alcohol remains after heating? How should children, pregnant people and people who do not drink think about it?
• How different are the sugar and salt in one tablespoon?
• How should you choose and use them?

For soy sauce, see our article on types of soy sauce. For sake and shochu as drinks, see our article on how sake is brewed and our article on types of shochu.

Conclusions

• Mirin was originally a “sweet alcoholic drink.” It first appears in writing as “蜜淋酎” in the 1593 diary 『駒井日記』 (Komai Nikki), and the character form “味醂” first appears in 1614. In the late Edo period it came to be used for grilled eel (kabayaki) and soba dipping sauce, and became a seasoning.
• Hon-mirin is “mirin” under the Liquor Tax Act, and it is an alcoholic beverage. Alcohol is about 14%. Mirin-style seasoning is a seasoning with under 1% alcohol, and fermented seasoning (mirin type) is a seasoning made undrinkable by adding salt. Neither is an alcoholic beverage.
• “Hon-mirin = rice only” is not always true. Under the law, glucose and starch syrup may be used up to 2.5 times the weight of the rice. Some hon-mirin lists “糖類” (sugars), so it is worth reading the ingredient list (原材料名).
• Under today’s rules, the “real” hon-mirin has fewer labeling duties. Because it is an alcoholic beverage, it does not need an ingredient list, allergens or country of origin, and may omit the best-by date, storage method and nutrition facts. Mirin-style seasoning and fermented seasoning must show all of these. Consumption tax also differs: 10% for hon-mirin and 8% for mirin-style seasoning.
• Liquor tax on hon-mirin is ¥20 per liter. Before the 1962 revision it was ¥140 per liter. It has not changed since 2006 and is one-fifth that of sake. Taxed domestic hon-mirin peaked at 158,000 kL in fiscal 1999 and was 94,000 kL in fiscal 2024.
• Heating does not bring alcohol to zero. In a US Department of Agriculture table, 85% remains if you add it to a boiling pot and turn off the heat at once, 40% after simmering 15 minutes, and 5% after 2.5 hours. One tablespoon of hon-mirin holds about 1.7 g of pure alcohol, about one-twelfth of a 500 mL beer.
• Per tablespoon, the energy of hon-mirin and mirin-style seasoning is almost the same (42–43 kcal). Carbohydrate (sugar) is about 1.4 times higher in mirin-style seasoning, and only fermented seasoning has salt, about 0.3 g per tablespoon.
• Most research on hon-mirin’s “shine (teri), keeping food from falling apart, and masking odors” comes from researchers at mirin makers (Takara Shuzo and Kikkoman). “三河みりん” (Mikawa mirin) is not a Geographical Indication (GI), and “純米本みりん” (junmai hon-mirin) and “本格みりん” (honkaku mirin) have no legal definition.

What we introduce in this article

How did mirin come about?

Mirin has a history of about 430 years. At first it was a “rare sweet alcoholic drink,” and it became a seasoning only from the late Edo period.

The oldest record is “蜜淋酎” in 1593

According to an NTA survey report on the history of alcoholic beverages, mirin appears in writing from the end of the Sengoku period into the Azuchi-Momoyama period.

After this, various other characters were used, such as “美醂酒,” “蜜醂酒” and “蜜琳酒.” At that time, mirin was drunk in the upper classes, such as court nobles, samurai families and temples, as a sweet, rare alcoholic drink given as a gift (NTA survey report).

Did it come from China? Was it born in Japan?

There are two theories about how mirin began (Yamashita 1991, Journal of the Brewing Society of Japan).

Citing Yamashita’s discussion, the NTA report says the most reasonable view is that a Ming-dynasty Chinese method of “adding shochu partway through the moromi (fermenting mash) to leave a lot of sugar” was brought over and changed in Japan to “adding shochu from the start.” The reason is that for most of the Edo period, nerizake and shirozake were made with sake, not shochu, so it is hard to think mirin was born from nerizake. The report says this change made it possible for mirin to reach 40% or more sugar, compared with 20–30% in the Chinese sweet drink.

• The 1649 『貞徳文集』 (Teitoku Bunshu) describes mirin, along with grape wine and shochu, as something that “came from abroad.”
• The distillation method for shochu, which mirin depends on, reached the Ryukyus in the 15th century, and the oldest written “焼酎” in Kyushu dates from 1559.

Note that the NTA report and Kikkoman’s explanation differ on the name of the Chinese sweet drink and the name of the book it appears in. In this article we write only “a theory that a Chinese sweet drink was brought over.”

In the Edo period it was a “sweet alcoholic drink”

Edo-period books describe how mirin was made.

The sweetness estimates are by Kobayashi (『本みりんの科学』 (The Science of Hon-Mirin), 1986). The sugar content of today’s hon-mirin is 43–47%, so the mirin of the early Edo period was a much less sweet drink than today’s. It is thought to have changed from a mirin close to shochu, to a mirin that was a sweet drink, and then to today’s hon-mirin (NTA survey report).

『和漢三才図会』 describes mirin as “very sweet, and liked by people who cannot drink alcohol and by women.”

Becoming a seasoning in the late Edo period: eel and soba sauce

『守貞漫稿』 (Morisada Mankō), written in the late Edo period (1837–1867), says that in the Kanto region mirin was used for grilled eel (kabayaki) and soba dipping sauce. The NTA report says this change in use is thought to have affected how mirin was made and its quality.

Nagareyama’s white mirin and Mikawa’s mirin

The following is handed down about the origins of today’s main mirin-producing regions.

• Nagareyama, Chiba Prefecture: Kikkoman writes that the second-generation Horikiri Monjiro (Sagamiya) “is said to have” established the method for “white mirin” in 1814. The brand “万上” (Manjo) later came under the Kikkoman group. Kikkoman says that Nagareyama mirin was shown at the 1873 Vienna World’s Fair, and that in 1877 “万上” became a purveyor to the Imperial Household Ministry.
• Mikawa, Aichi Prefecture: In the Edo period, the neighboring Chita Peninsula was a famous sake region. There is a history of carrying the sake lees from there to Mikawa, making “kasutori shochu” (shochu from lees), and making mirin with that shochu (an explanation from a local library, introduced in the NTA report).
• Among Mikawa mirin breweries, the National Hon-Mirin Council’s “member history” says 九重味淋 (Hekinan, Aichi) began making mirin in 1772. 甘強酒造 (Kanie, Aichi) began in 1862, and 角谷文治郎商店 (Hekinan) in 1910 (all compiled from each company’s own explanation).

Mirin you drink: “hon-naoshi” and “yanagikage”

There were also drinks made by adding shochu or alcohol to mirin. They were called “本直し” (hon-naoshi), with 22–23% alcohol and 10–12% sugar. According to the NTA report, they were made and drunk in large amounts after World War II. But in the 1950s and 1960s, sake, beer and whisky became available at reasonable prices, and hon-naoshi quickly fell out of favor.

A 1986 review (Morita, Takara Shuzo) says “mirin called hon-naoshi or yanagikage is still drunk today.” There is also a custom at New Year of steeping a herbal medicine called tososan in mirin and drinking it.

War and liquor tax: mirin was an expensive drink

• In 1943, hon-mirin was treated as a luxury and the government limited its production (Kikkoman).
• The NTA report writes that even after the Meiji era hon-mirin was expensive and was hardly used in home cooking.
• In 1962, the liquor tax on mirin fell sharply, from ¥140,000 to ¥67,700 per kL (NTA report). Kikkoman writes that the tax cuts of 1959 and 1962 let it be sold more cheaply, and that by 1967 production exceeded the pre-war peak.
• From 1965 (Showa 40), hon-mirin grew as a seasoning and came to be used at home (NTA report).

The birth of mirin-style seasoning

Hon-mirin is an alcoholic beverage, so it could normally be sold only at liquor stores with a liquor retail license, and supermarkets could not carry it (Kikkoman, 1986 review). So “a seasoning that resembles mirin” that is not an alcoholic beverage was developed.

The 1986 review writes that fermentable seasoning liquid (a relative of today’s fermented seasoning) was first used to hide the odor when the fish used for kamaboko (fish cakes) changed to Alaska pollock. Kikkoman explains that around 1967, when production exceeded the pre-war level, the name “本みりん” (hon-mirin) came into use to tell it apart from the mirin-style seasoning that was widely sold at the time.

1996: hon-mirin can be sold at grocery stores

The trade paper Nihon Shokuryo Shimbun (November 20, 1996) reported that on November 18, 1996, the NTA, by a notice from the Commissioner, eased the conditions for the license to sell mirin (the mirin retail license). The content is that population and distance standards would no longer be applied, so that mirin with “an extract content of 40 degrees or more, in a 1.8-liter container” could be sold at ordinary grocery stores. Kikkoman also writes that “in 1996 the rules for liquor sales licenses were relaxed, and hon-mirin became available at supermarkets too.”

We could not confirm the notice itself, so in this article we present it as a news report and a maker’s explanation. After that, from 1998 to 2003, the distance standard (January 2001) and the population standard (September 2003) were also abolished for ordinary liquor retail licenses (NTA council material).

Timeline

How mirin is made: three types

It helps to think of hon-mirin as “making rice sweet inside an alcoholic drink,” mirin-style seasoning as “mixing in sweet things,” and fermented seasoning as “fermenting and then adding salt.”

Hon-mirin: saccharification and maturing from glutinous rice, rice koji and shochu

Hon-mirin is made by putting steamed glutinous rice and rice koji into shochu (or distilled alcohol).

1. Steamed glutinous rice and rice koji are steeped in shochu or alcohol.
2. Koji enzymes break down the starch in the glutinous rice into sugars, and break down proteins into amino acids (saccharification).
3. According to Takara Shuzo, it is left for about 30–40 days to mature, and during that time the sugars and amino acids build up various aromas and flavors.
4. The moromi is pressed and strained.

Because shochu is added from the start, yeast alcohol fermentation does not take place (NTA report). The alcohol comes from the shochu or alcohol that was added. This is where it differs from sake, where “rice is fermented to make alcohol.” For how sake is made, see our article on how sake is brewed, and for the types of shochu, see our article on types of shochu.

80–90% of the sugar in hon-mirin is glucose, and it also contains sugars such as nigerose, maltose and isomaltotriose, as well as oligosaccharides in which more glucose is linked together (Tsuda 2009).

There are two trade groups of hon-mirin makers.

Mirin-style seasoning: made by mixing starch syrup and other ingredients

Mirin-style seasoning is a seasoning made by mixing rice, rice koji, umami agents, acidulants and so on into sugars such as starch syrup and glucose. Alcohol is under 1%, and it is not an alcoholic beverage (the Japan Mirin Association, NTA report).

Kikkoman explains mirin-style seasoning as something “made mainly by blending ingredients such as sugars, without saccharification or maturing.”

Fermented seasoning (mirin type): salt is added to “make it undrinkable”

Fermented seasoning (mirin type) uses rice and rice koji, goes through both alcohol fermentation and saccharification/maturing, and then has salt added to make it undrinkable (NTA report). This is called “不可飲処置” (fukain shochi, making it undrinkable by adding salt).

Under the Liquor Tax Act, “alcoholic beverages” are “drinks with 1 degree or more of alcohol” (Article 2), so something made undrinkable is not an alcoholic beverage even if it has about 10% alcohol. That is why no liquor tax applies, and it can be sold by stores that are not liquor stores.

However, we could not find, in any law or NTA notice, a figure for “how much salt must be added for it to count as undrinkable.”

• The NTA report says “many are close to hon-mirin with 1.5% or more salt added.”
• The Japan Mirin Association says “about 1.5% salt.”
• The National Hon-Mirin Council’s table says “2%,” and material from a mirin makers’ study group says “1.5% or more.”

All of these are industry figures. We could not find a salt percentage in any law or notice. We also do not write that “the law sets it at 2% or more.”

Comparing the three types

Sources: the Japan Mirin Association, the National Hon-Mirin Council, the NTA report, the Liquor Tax Act. The figures are trade-group guides and differ by product.

The rules on ingredients also differ. The ingredients of hon-mirin are set by the Liquor Tax Act, but for mirin-style seasoning and fermented seasoning they are “industry voluntary standards” (material from a mirin makers’ study group).

“発酵調味料” in an ingredient list does not always mean the mirin type

When “発酵調味料” appears in the ingredient list (原材料名) of a processed food, it is not always the mirin type. Looking at the products on Urayomi,

so there are many kinds of fermented seasoning: rice, yeast extract, wheat and so on. The Consumer Affairs Agency’s Q&A has an example that writes the ingredients in parentheses, as in “発酵調味料（米、米こうじ、酒、砂糖、食塩）”. For details, see the ingredient dictionary entry “Mirin and rice fermented seasoning” and our article on yeast extract.

Mirin’s “relative”: ash-added sake (akamochi-zake, or akazake)

Under the Liquor Tax Act there is a drink treated as “similar to mirin” that carries the same tax rate as mirin. It is 灰持酒 (aku-mochi-zake, ash-added sake). It is a drink fermented from rice and rice koji with wood ash added, and the conditions include using 1 kg or more of wood ash per kL and a pH of 5.5 or higher (Liquor Tax Act Enforcement Order, Article 8-2). The 1986 review lists Kumamoto Prefecture’s “赤酒” (akazake) in this group.

What does the law set?

The contents of hon-mirin are set by the Liquor Tax Act, but words like “本” (hon), “純米” (junmai) and “三河” (Mikawa) have no legal definition.

“Mirin” under the Liquor Tax Act

Under the Liquor Tax Act, mirin is one kind of “blended alcoholic beverage” (混成酒類), and is defined as follows (Article 3, item 11; Enforcement Order, Article 5).

For “protein hydrolysate,” an NTA notice says “for the time being, limited to those made from wheat gluten.” If you mix mirin with water or the like so that the extract content falls below 40 degrees, the law treats it as making a different drink, such as a “liqueur” (Enforcement Order).

Even “hon-mirin” can use sugars

This is the point most often overlooked. The law allows hon-mirin to use glucose and starch syrup up to 2.5 times the weight of the rice. The NTA report cites a book from the mirin industry (Tsuruta, 2003), which says that the use of sugars for brewing was permitted soon after the war, and that it is estimated to be used in “nearly 80%” of total hon-mirin production. This is an estimate from a 2003 book, so we do not know the current share.

Comparing products from the same maker (King Jozo’s “Hinode”), the differences show up in the ingredient list (原材料名).

Source: King Jozo’s product pages (checked October 3, 2026). “みりんタイプ調味料（加塩）” for 和風天国 is the maker’s wording, and its alcohol content is 10.0%. In this article we treat it as an example of a product sold in the “fermented seasoning (mirin type)” section, which contains salt.

Even when the label says “本みりん,” some are made only from rice, rice koji and shochu, and some use distilled alcohol or sugars. Legally, both are the same “mirin.” If you want one made only from rice, the only way is to check the ingredient list for “糖類” (sugars), “水あめ” (starch syrup) and “醸造アルコール” (distilled alcohol). We cover distilled alcohol in the additives database entry “醸造用アルコール・酒精”.

Note that some hon-mirin reference sites say “secondary ingredients up to twice the weight of polished rice,” but the current Enforcement Order says “2.5 times or less.”

The words “本,” “純米,” “本格” and “三河”

Shochu’s “本格焼酎” (honkaku shochu) and sake’s “純米酒” (junmai-shu) have national standards (our article on types of shochu, our article on how sake is brewed). Mirin’s “純米” and “本格” have no equivalent standard. The sure way is to check the contents by the ingredient list, not by the words.

Does the “real thing” have fewer labeling duties? A reversal in labeling, tax and where it is sold

Because hon-mirin is an alcoholic beverage, under the food labeling rules there is a lot that it does not need to write, compared with mirin-style seasoning.

Comparing the labels

The Food Labeling Standards say that alcoholic beverages (酒類) do not need to show the “ingredient list (原材料名),” “allergens” or “country of origin,” and may also omit the “storage method,” “best-by date” and “nutrition facts” (Article 3, paragraph 3 and Article 5; NTA “Q&A on labeling of alcoholic beverages under the Food Labeling Act,” Q8 and Q25). Mirin-style seasoning and fermented seasoning follow the same rules as ordinary processed foods.

Sources: the Food Labeling Standards; NTA “Q&A on labeling of alcoholic beverages under the Food Labeling Act,” Q8, Q9 and Q25; Act on Liquor Tax Conservation and Liquor Industry Associations, Article 86-5, and its Enforcement Order, Article 8-3; NTA “Q&A on the reduced tax rate system for consumption tax (individual cases),” Q13; NTA notice “Labeling standards for preventing drinking by persons under 20.”

In other words, under the law, the “real” hon-mirin often has less it must write on the label. In practice, many makers voluntarily write the ingredient list and nutrition facts. King Jozo’s hon-mirin also had, on its product page, an ingredient list and a voluntary statement that “no specified allergens are included.” But it is not a legal violation if some hon-mirin does not write them.

On allergens, the law permits the use of “a protein hydrolysate made from wheat gluten” as a secondary ingredient of hon-mirin. We could not confirm which products actually use it, but because alcoholic beverages have no allergen labeling duty, people with a wheat allergy should ask the maker if the hon-mirin has no ingredient list.

There is a separate rule for the origin of the rice. Mirin is an item under the “Rice Traceability Act” (rice processed foods), which requires keeping transaction records and passing on origin information about the rice to business partners and consumers (MAFF). Telling consumers can be done on the container or by other means such as a website. The Hinode hon-mirin showed the origin within the ingredient list, as “glutinous rice (Thailand, Japan).”

Consumption tax is 10% and 8%

The NTA’s Q&A on the reduced tax rate says that mirin and cooking sake that count as alcoholic beverages under the Liquor Tax Act are not eligible for the reduced rate, while mirin-style seasoning that is not an alcoholic beverage (under 1 degree of alcohol) is a “food or drink” and is eligible. Fermented seasoning is also a food if it is not an alcoholic beverage, but the Q&A had no direct statement on it.

Let us calculate how much the price changes from tax alone (an example calculation).

If they are made at the same price, the difference from tax alone is about ¥32 per liter. The actual price difference is thought to come largely from raw materials (glutinous rice or starch syrup), the length of maturing and so on.

Age checks and the “drinking under age 20 is prohibited by law” label

When you buy hon-mirin, an age-check screen may appear at the register.

• The Act Prohibiting Drinking by Persons Under 20 (二十歳未満ノ者ノ飲酒ノ禁止ニ関スル法律) bans stores from selling alcohol knowing that a person under 20 will drink it (Article 1, paragraph 3), and requires stores to take measures such as checking age (Article 1, paragraph 4).
• The label “Drinking by persons under 20 is prohibited by law” on a container may be omitted if the container is clearly for use as a seasoning (NTA notice 3(3)).
• In the store, a sign such as “alcoholic beverage section” is required on the alcohol shelf. However, the NTA explains that if mirin is placed on a shelf separate from other alcohol and labeled “mirin,” “this is alcohol” or “alcohol-containing seasoning,” this large sign is not needed (display Q&A, Q5).

We found no NTA material that specifically explains age checks when you buy hon-mirin for cooking. The check at the register is a “measure” the law requires, and each store runs it in its own way.

Liquor tax and the volume of hon-mirin sold

The liquor tax on hon-mirin fell from ¥140 to ¥20 per liter over a little more than 60 years.

Liquor tax: from ¥140 to ¥20 per liter

• It has not changed since May 1, 2006. In the liquor tax revisions of October 2023 and October 2026, mirin was left unchanged (checked in the tax rate list of the “Sake Guide”).
• Sake and fruit wine are ¥100,000 per kL, and beer-type drinks are ¥155,000 from October 2026. Mirin is one-fifth of sake.
• For a 1-liter bottle the liquor tax is ¥20, for 1.8 L it is ¥36, and for 500 mL it is ¥10.
• The around-1986 figure of “about ¥74 per liter” is higher than the ¥67.7 of 1962. That means it rose once after 1962 and fell sharply by 2005, but we could not confirm when or by how much it changed (¥74 is an “about” figure written in a review by a Takara Shuzo researcher).

Trend in taxed volume of hon-mirin

In NTA statistics, the volume of hon-mirin on which liquor tax was paid in Japan (taxed volume) shows the following.

• In fiscal 1970 it was 31,000 kL.
• It rose to 80,000 kL in fiscal 1985 and 97,000 kL in fiscal 1996, and reached its peak of 158,000 kL in fiscal 1999.
• After that it stayed at about 100,000–110,000 kL, and in fiscal 2024 it was 94,000 kL, about 60% of the peak in fiscal 1999.
• Hon-mirin in fiscal 2024 was about 1.2% of all alcoholic beverages (8.116 million kL).

We could not confirm why fiscal 1999–2000 alone are so high. Also, figures through fiscal 2005 are counted under the categories used before the 2006 revision.

In 1984, mirin-style seasoning outsold hon-mirin in homes

Mirin-style seasoning and fermented seasoning are not alcoholic beverages, so they are not in the national alcohol statistics. In what we looked at, we could not find national shipment statistics.

The figures are old, but a 1986 review gives Takara Shuzo’s estimate of the volume of mirin and similar seasonings in 1984. The total was about 152,000 kL, with sales of about ¥60 billion.

Source: Morita 1986 (Figure 1; originally an estimate by Takara Shuzo’s marketing department).

In households, mirin-style seasoning (43%) slightly exceeded hon-mirin (42%). This suggests that in the era when hon-mirin could be bought only at liquor stores, mirin-style seasoning, available at supermarkets, was spreading into homes. For commercial use, fermented seasoning with salt made up more than one-third.

What about effects on the body?

The points to watch are “alcohol” in hon-mirin, “the amount of sugar and food additives” in mirin-style seasoning, and “salt and alcohol” in fermented seasoning.

How much alcohol remains after heating?

It is often said that “the alcohol in mirin burns off when heated.” The makers’ explanations also split into two.

The figures we can check are in a US Department of Agriculture (USDA) table, “the share of alcohol that remains in a dish,” which the USDA publishes for nutrition calculations. It is based on an experiment at the University of Idaho in the US and elsewhere (Augustin et al. 1992).

• Even after simmering 2.5 hours, 5% remains. The explanation that “nothing remains if you heat it enough” does not match this table.
• However, this table is based on dishes made with wine and liqueurs, not measured with mirin. It also varies with the size of the pot, whether there is a lid, and the strength of the heat.
• We found no Japanese paper that measured how much alcohol remains in nikiri mirin (mirin boiled first to drive off the alcohol).

How much pure alcohol is in 1 tablespoon?

Using the formula in the MHLW’s “Guidelines on Alcohol Consumption with Consideration for Health” (2024) (amount × alcohol content × 0.8),

• 1 tbsp of hon-mirin (15 mL, 14 degrees) has about 1.7 g of pure alcohol.
• A 500 mL beer (5%) has 20 g, so 1 tbsp of hon-mirin is about one-twelfth of a medium bottle of beer.
• 1 tbsp of fermented seasoning (alcohol 10%) has about 1.2 g.

As an example calculation, if you use 2 tbsp of hon-mirin in a simmered dish for 4 people and simmer it 15 minutes, the remaining alcohol is “1.7 g × 2 × 40%,” about 1.3 g, or about 0.3 g per person.

Everyday foods also contain very small amounts of alcohol. In a study that analyzed German retail products (Gorgus et al. 2016), orange, apple and grape juices contained up to 0.77 g of ethanol per liter. For one glass (200 mL), that is up to about 0.15 g.

The guidelines put the amount that raises the risk of lifestyle-related diseases at 40 g or more of pure alcohol per day for men and 20 g or more for women. The alcohol in mirin used in cooking is orders of magnitude below this. However, this is a “comparison of amounts,” and it does not mean “zero” for people who want to avoid even a little.

What about children, pregnancy, driving and people who do not drink?

We found no material in which the government or a public body gave a view such as “children and pregnant people should avoid” on mirin used in cooking. Here are the facts that are known.

If this concerns you, you can boil mirin first for dishes that are not heated, use it in dishes that simmer for a long time, or, if you want to avoid alcohol, choose by looking at the alcohol content on the label.

There is also an animal experiment in which mice were given mirin, sake, red wine or 5% ethanol to drink for 45 days, and the action of the enzymes that break down alcohol in the liver changed (Kishimoto et al. 1997). In this experiment mirin was given in large amounts as a drink, which has nothing to do with the amount used in cooking. For the link between heavy drinking and the body, see our article on sake and health, our article on shochu and health and our article on beer and health.

Sugar: compared per tablespoon

It is often said that “mirin-style seasoning has a lot of sugar.” We check this against the food composition table.

The values in the composition table are “per 100 g.” But mirin-style seasoning is heavier than hon-mirin (per 100 mL: hon-mirin 117.0 g, mirin-style seasoning 126.9 g), so the weight differs even for the same tablespoon. So we recalculated per tablespoon (15 mL) (our own calculation).

Sources: hon-mirin, mirin-style seasoning and cooking sake are calculated from the composition table (8th Revised Edition, 2023 Supplement); fermented seasoning is the maker’s published values.

• The energy of hon-mirin and mirin-style seasoning is about the same. Hon-mirin’s alcohol also has energy, so it makes up for the lower sugar.
• Carbohydrate (mostly sugars) in mirin-style seasoning is about 1.4 times that of hon-mirin. Compared by the amount of sugar that becomes energy in the body (available carbohydrate), hon-mirin is about 4.7 g and mirin-style seasoning about 7.6 g, so the gap is even larger.
• On types of sugar, hon-mirin is mainly glucose, and also contains oligosaccharides and others that the composition table does not measure individually. Mirin-style seasoning is characterized by a lot of glucose and maltose (the sugar of starch syrup) (composition table, per 100 g: glucose 24.4 g, maltose 12.4 g).
• Some mirin-type seasonings advertise “zero sugar.” Hinode’s “みりんタイプ糖質ゼロ” (Mirin Type, zero sugar) is sweetened with resistant dextrin and a sweetener (stevia), and has 13 kcal per tablespoon.

The sugar difference per tablespoon is about 3 g. For one simmered dish that is not a big difference, but it adds up in households that use a lot in daily cooking. On types of sugar, see our article on types of sugar and our article on isomerized sugar; on sweeteners, see our article on sweeteners.

Salt: use fermented seasoning by “subtracting salt”

Fermented seasoning contains salt to make it undrinkable. Hinode’s Wafu Tengoku (mirin type) has 0.3 g of salt per tablespoon, and “みりんタイプ糖質ゼロ” has 0.35 g.

Material from a mirin makers’ study group also writes that “salt needs to be adjusted when using it.” When you replace the “mirin” in a recipe with fermented seasoning, reduce the salt or soy sauce a little by that amount to avoid taking too much salt. On salt intake, see our article on salt intake.

Food additives: more common in mirin-style and fermented seasonings

Depending on the product, mirin-style and fermented seasonings use food additives. In the Hinode examples,

• Shinmiryo (mirin-style seasoning): acidulant (酸味料)
• Wafu Tengoku (mirin type): alcohol (酒精), seasoning (amino acids, etc.) (調味料（アミノ酸等）), acidulant (酸味料)
• Mirin Type, zero sugar: alcohol (酒精), seasoning (amino acid) (調味料（アミノ酸）), sweetener (stevia) (甘味料（ステビア）)

King Jozo notes that the effect of Shinmiryo in “masking odors” is “the effect of the acidulant.” For how these additives work and how their safety is assessed, see our article on acidulants and pH adjusters, our article on umami seasonings, our article on sweeteners and the additives database.

Even for hon-mirin, labeling is required if food additives are used, but the secondary ingredients that may be used are set by law, and Hinode’s hon-mirin showed no food additives on its label.

Is mirin-style seasoning “bad for the body”?

We could not confirm any study that compared the effects on the body of people who ate mirin-style seasoning and hon-mirin. The known differences are as follows.

In the 1986 review’s analysis, total sugar in mirin-style seasoning was 61.5–68.3%, higher than in hon-mirin (46.9–47.2%). A 2021 study (Yamamoto et al.; a Kikkoman researcher is among the co-authors) reported that hon-mirin has more amino acids and less sugar than mirin-style seasoning, and that a taste test found differences in sweetness and richness (kokumi).

Whether it is “bad for the body” comes down to applying these differences to your own diet. It is realistic to choose by purpose: hon-mirin if you want less sugar, mirin-style seasoning if you want to avoid alcohol.

Studies of cooking effects are mostly by makers’ researchers

Hon-mirin is said to have effects such as “giving shine (teri),” “keeping food from falling apart” and “masking odors,” and there are papers on them.

The studies listed here are by Takara Shuzo researchers (Tsuda 2009 is a summary by a researcher at a junior college, but Takara Shuzo researchers took part in many of the experiments it draws on). Most other papers on the cooking effects of mirin were also by researchers at Takara Shuzo and Kikkoman. In what we looked at, we found no follow-up study (replication) by researchers unrelated to the makers that confirmed the same results. This does not mean the research is wrong, but it is worth knowing that there may be a conflict of interest.

A foreword in a society journal puts it as “mirin-style seasoning does not have the cooking effects of hon-mirin,” but King Jozo rates its mirin-style Shinmiryo “◎” for sweetness and shine and “○” for masking odors. If the research explanation holds, effects that need “both sugar and alcohol,” such as keeping food from falling apart, would be hard to achieve with mirin-style seasoning, which has almost no alcohol, but we could not confirm any study that ran the same experiment with mirin-style seasoning.

There is also research suggesting that hon-mirin has an antioxidant effect (preventing things from oxidizing). However, this is about suppressing the oxidation of oils and the like during cooking, and it is not research showing a benefit to human health.

Judging what you often hear

How to choose and use

First decide whether you want to “avoid alcohol,” “cut sugar” or “care about raw materials,” and what to choose becomes clear.

Choose by purpose

What to look at on the label

1. Type: is it “みりん” (an alcoholic beverage), or “みりん風調味料,” “発酵調味料” or “みりんタイプ調味料”?
2. Alcohol content: hon-mirin is about 13.5–14.5 degrees. Mirin-style seasoning is under 1%, and fermented seasoning is about 10%.
3. Ingredient list (原材料名): which of “糖類” (sugars), “水あめ” (starch syrup), “醸造アルコール” (distilled alcohol) and “焼酎” (shochu) is in it? Some hon-mirin does not list ingredients.
4. Salt equivalent: fermented seasoning contains salt.
5. Food additives: acidulants, seasonings (amino acids, etc.), sweeteners and so on, written after the “/”.

How to use: nikiri, when to add it, and storage

• Nikiri: for dishes that are not heated, such as dressed salads and sauces, there is a method of bringing hon-mirin to a boil in a small pot to drive off the alcohol before using it (Takara Shuzo). However, we found no data measuring how far the alcohol falls.
• When to add it: Takara Shuzo recommends adding it at the start to keep food from falling apart and to mask odors, and adding it again at the end when you want shine.
• Storage: hon-mirin has a lot of alcohol and sugar (about 45%), so after opening it can be kept in a cool, dark place at room temperature. In the refrigerator, the sugar may crystallize white, but the makers explain that there is no problem with quality. Mirin-style seasoning has almost no alcohol, so put it in the refrigerator once opened (Kikkoman).
• Hon-mirin gets darker because of a reaction in which sugars and amino acids gradually bond (the Maillard reaction), which goes faster at higher temperatures (Takara Shuzo).
• If you substitute: a method often introduced is to use sake and sugar in place of hon-mirin. However, Takara Shuzo measured shine at about half that of hon-mirin.

If you want a hon-mirin made only from rice, rice koji and shochu

As we saw above, some products labeled “本みりん” use sugars or distilled alcohol. If you want a hon-mirin made only from rice, rice koji and shochu, choose one whose ingredient list has no “糖類,” “水あめ” or “醸造アルコール”.

The National Hon-Mirin Council is a group of mirin makers that, in principle, use single-distilled shochu (shochu distilled one batch at a time). 角谷文治郎商店’s “三州三河みりん” (Hekinan, Aichi; founded 1910) is a brand of a member of this council. Check the ingredient list and volume on the product page before you buy.

白扇酒造 (Kawabe, Gifu Prefecture) is also a member of the same council. According to the council’s introduction, it is a brewery that in the late Edo period made “kasutori shochu” from the sake lees of a nearby sake brewery and made mirin with it. It is described as making its koji by hand, without machines.

According to the National Hon-Mirin Council’s “member history,” 九重味淋 (Hekinan, Aichi) is a brewery that began making mirin in 1772 (the company’s explanation). 九重味淋 is also named in the Japan Mirin Association’s member list (on its “Hon-Mirin Day” page). According to the council’s introduction, its brand “九重櫻” is made with glutinous rice, rice koji and honkaku shochu. You can choose a larger size, for households that use a lot.

What we introduced in this article (summary)

Here is a recap of what we introduced in the article. The reasons and ingredients are in each section.

Summary

Sources

Laws and the NTA

• Liquor Tax Act (Act No. 6 of 1953), Articles 2, 3 and 23; Liquor Tax Act Enforcement Order (Cabinet Order No. 97 of 1962), Articles 5 and 8-2 (e-Gov Law Search) https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/328AC0000000006 ・ https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/337CO0000000097
• NTA, “Interpretive notices on the Liquor Tax Act and laws on liquor administration,” Article 3 (definition of mirin) https://www.nta.go.jp/law/tsutatsu/kihon/sake/2-02.htm
• NTA, “Traditional Sake Brewing” survey report, II-4 History of hon-mirin https://www.nta.go.jp/taxes/sake/koujikin/pdf/0021012-102_05.pdf
• NTA, “Sake Guide” 2026 edition (tax rate list, taxed volume, production volume, history), 2006 and 2005 editions (tax rate list)
• NTA, “Q&A on labeling of alcoholic beverages under the Food Labeling Act,” Q8, Q9, Q25 and Q26 https://www.nta.go.jp/taxes/sake/hyoji/shokuhin/sakeqa/3007.pdf
• Act on Liquor Tax Conservation and Liquor Industry Associations, Article 86-5, and its Enforcement Order, Article 8-3 (e-Gov Law Search) https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/328AC0000000007
• MAFF, “Rice Traceability System” https://www.maff.go.jp/j/syouan/keikaku/kome_toresa/
• NTA, “Q&A on the reduced tax rate system for consumption tax (individual cases),” Q13
• NTA notice “Labeling standards for preventing drinking by persons under 20,” and “Labeling standards for preventing drinking by minors (display) Q&A,” Q5
• Act Prohibiting Drinking by Persons Under 20 (二十歳未満ノ者ノ飲酒ノ禁止ニ関スル法律) (e-Gov Law Search)
• NTA, “List of Geographical Indications for alcoholic beverages” (checked October 3, 2026)
• NTA, Central Council for Alcoholic Beverages material (deregulation of liquor retail licenses)
• Nihon Shokuryo Shimbun, “Mirin retail license: supply-demand adjustment requirement not applied” (November 20, 1996)

Composition and health

• MEXT, “Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan (8th Revised Edition), 2023 Supplement,” main table and carbohydrate table (hon-mirin 16025, mirin-style seasoning 17054, cooking sake 17138) https://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/syokuhinseibun/mext_00001.html
• MHLW, “Guidelines on Alcohol Consumption with Consideration for Health” (February 2024)
• USDA, “Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, Release 6” (2007) https://www.ars.usda.gov/ARSUserFiles/80400525/Data/retn/retn06.pdf
• Augustin J, et al. Alcohol retention in food preparation. J Am Diet Assoc 1992;92(4):486-488 (PMID 1556354)
• Gorgus E, et al. J Anal Toxicol 2016 (PMID 27405361)
• Kishimoto R, et al. J Nutr Sci Vitaminol 1997 (PMID 9530614)
• Yamamoto K, et al. J Biosci Bioeng 2021;132(6):599-605 (PMID 34607774)

History and cooking effects (including papers by researchers at mirin makers)

• Yamashita, “The origin of mirin,” Journal of the Brewing Society of Japan 1991;86(10):768-772
• Morita H, “Mirin and similar seasonings,” Journal of Cookery Science of Japan 1986;19(3):161-169
• Tsuda, “Cooking effects of mirin,” Journal of Cookery Science of Japan 2009;42(1):44-48
• Takakura, “Cooking effects of hon-mirin,” Seibutsu-kogaku Kaishi 2022;100(2):81-84
• Oe et al., Journal of Cookery Science of Japan 2001;34:25 (a survey of Edo-period cookbooks)

Trade groups and companies

• The Japan Mirin Association (全国味淋協会), “Knowledge of hon-mirin” https://www.honmirin.org/knowledge/
• The National Hon-Mirin Council (全国本みりん協議会), “Get to know hon-mirin” and “Member history” http://zenkokuhonmirin.com/study.html
• Kikkoman, “History of mirin,” “What is hon-mirin,” “FAQ” https://www.kikkoman.co.jp/enjoys/mirin/history.html
• Takara Shuzo, “Hon-mirin FAQ”
• King Jozo “Hinode,” product pages for Hon-mirin Junryo, Mukashinagara no Junmai Hon-mirin, Shinmiryo, Wafu Tengoku and Mirin Type zero sugar (checked October 3, 2026)
• Fuji Brand, “Shin-mirin Fukusen” (福泉産業)