Ingredients A–ZSeasoningsChecked 2026-09-30
Sake / wine 酒・ワイン
Food ingredientUsed in 3 products on this site
Sake (seishu, Japanese rice wine), wine, Shaoxing wine (laojiu), and other alcoholic drinks added as a seasoning. They are used to give aroma and flavor.
How it appears on labels
| On the label (Japanese) | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 酒 | sake (written simply as “酒”) |
| 清酒 | seishu (refined sake) |
| 料理酒 | cooking sake (料理酒) |
| 赤ワイン | red wine |
| 白ワイン | white wine |
| 紹興酒 | Shaoxing wine |
| 老酒調製品 | laojiu preparation (老酒調製品) |
Labeling rules
- Under the Liquor Tax Act, seishu (refined sake) is made by fermenting and filtering rice, rice koji, and water (among other raw materials), and has an alcohol content under 22 degrees (Article 3, item 7). “Fruit wine” (果実酒), which covers wine, is made by fermenting fruit or fruit and water (among other raw materials), and has an alcohol content under 20 degrees (Article 3, item 13). Both fall under “brewed alcoholic beverages” (醸造酒類) (Article 3, item 4).
- Under the Food Labeling Standards, an ingredient list is not mandatory for alcoholic drinks sold as such (the Consumer Affairs Agency's Q&A on the Food Labeling Standards, 原原-3). When alcohol is used as an ingredient in a processed food, it is written in the ingredient list like any other ingredient.
- “醸造用アルコール” (brewing alcohol) and “酒精” (spirit alcohol) are different ingredients from sake or wine (explained in the additive database).
Good to know
- The Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan (8th revised edition, 2023 supplement) describe “料理酒” (cooking sake) as a seasoning that keeps the flavor of seishu but has more salt, vinegar, and the like added than the amount set in the Liquor Tax Act, so that it cannot be drunk. In the Tables, cooking sake has 2.2 g of salt equivalent per 100 g.
- When the ingredient list says only “酒”, the label does not tell you which kind of alcoholic drink it is.
- The Tables describe Shaoxing wine as a Chinese brewed liquor (yellow wine, 黄酒) made from glutinous rice, with the product made in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province, China, being well known. Wine aged for a long time is generally called laojiu (老酒).
- In the Tables, alcohol per 100 g is 12.3 g for seishu (regular sake), 9.3 g for red wine, 14.1 g for Shaoxing wine, and 10.6 g for cooking sake.
- Among the products on this site, Kurotaki Mori Monogatari Mura's yuzu ponzu (黒滝森物語村のゆずポン酢, citrus soy-sauce dressing) lists “酒”, Ojika Sauce's Worcestershire sauce (オジカソースのウスターソース) lists “赤ワイン” (red wine), and the sauce mix for twice-cooked pork (回鍋肉用の合わせ調味料, Ajinomoto Cook Do) lists “老酒調製品” (laojiu preparation). The latter has no parentheses showing what is in it, so the label does not say what was added to laojiu to make the preparation.
Food composition data
| Sake and wine (per 100 g) | Energy (kcal) | Protein (g) | Fat (g) | Carbohydrate (g) | Salt equivalent (g) | Alcohol (g) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seishu (refined sake), regular sake (普通酒)Food No. 16001 | 107 | 0.4 | Tr | 4.9 | 0 | 12.3 |
| Wine, redFood No. 16011 | 68 | 0.2 | Tr | 1.5 | 0 | 9.3 |
| Shaoxing wineFood No. 16013 | 126 | 1.7 | Tr | 5.1 | 0 | 14.1 |
| Cooking sakeFood No. 17138 | 88 | 0.2 | Tr | 4.7 | 2.2 | 10.6 |
Per 100 g of the edible portion. Source: MEXT, Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan (8th revised edition, 2023 supplement).
Products on this site that contain it
| Product | As written on the label |
|---|---|
| 「Cook Do®」回鍋肉用 90g味の素 | 老酒調製品 |
| ゆずポン酢黒滝森物語村 | 酒 |
| ウスターソースオジカソース | 赤ワイン |
Product pages are in Japanese for now; each one reads every ingredient on the label.
Related pages
- Article: How sake is brewed and the rice polishing ratio (精米歩合)
- Ingredient: Mirin and fermented rice seasoning
- Ingredient: Chinese seasonings (doubanjiang, tianmianjiang, douchi, etc.)
- Additive database: Brewing alcohol and spirit alcohol (醸造用アルコール・酒精)
- Products on this site: Ponzu
- Products on this site: Sauces and ketchup
Sources
- Liquor Tax Act (Act No. 6 of 1953) — e-Gov Japanese Law Search
- Q&A on the Food Labeling Standards (revised March 28, 2025) — Consumer Affairs Agency
- Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan (8th revised edition, 2023 supplement) — MEXT
Sources are in Japanese unless noted otherwise. This page is a translation of our Japanese page; if they differ, the Japanese page is the reference.
This page lists facts stated in laws and in standards of public bodies and industry associations. It does not judge whether an ingredient or product is good or bad. If you have a food allergy, always check the label on the package.