Japanese sake, also known as rice wine, Nihonshu or just sake in Japan, is an alcoholic beverage that's native to Japan and is becoming increasingly popular both in and outside of the island nation. However, there are a plethora of variations, ranging from bottles that have collaborated with popular anime shows to low-alcohol sakes, sweet sakes, dry sakes, and even sparkling sakes. On top of that, there are many popular sake brands like Dassai, Hakkaisan, and Kubota, all releasing various types of sake like junmai, ginjo, and honjozo sakes, it can be incredibly difficult to know what the best sake in Japan is.
In order to figure out what the best Japanese sake is, our editors gathered the most popular sake in Japan from e-commerce sites commonly used in Japan like Amazon, Rakuten, and Yahoo! Shopping, and tested and ranked them all.
We tested each sake for the following:
Keep on reading to find out more about the best Japanese sake! We've also included a buying guide to help you make your next purchase.
Quick List - Top Japanese Sake
Asahi Shuzo
The Best Overall Sake With Deliciously Sweet and Fragrant Flavors
Saiya Shuzoten
An Acidic and Bitter Sake That Pairs Well With Italian Food
Reina holds certifications in Japanese sake, international alcohols, cooking, and kimono instructing. She was named "Miss Kura 2017" and winner of a Japanese sake beauty pageant, and since then she has been using Instagram to show others the appeal of Japanese sake. She also works as a Japanese sake writer, visiting sake breweries around Japan and writing articles about them. Her Instagram account (@love_sake_tokyo) has over 5,000 followers and she also has experience planning and managing Japanese sake breweries and companies.
mybest US' editing team consists of experienced members who have backgrounds in writing, editing, translation, and more. We are dedicated to researching what makes a product or service the best to users in the US in order to create top-quality articles. From skincare, to kitchen appliances, and to DIY supplies, our mission is to find the best ones for you.
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Japanese sake is a traditional alcoholic beverage made by fermenting and aging rice and a fungus commonly known as koji. Similar to wine made with grapes, one of the biggest draws of Japanese sake is its variety; the same bottle can taste completely different depending on its classification, how it's consumed, and even the season!
Moreover, while Japanese sake can very broadly be classified as either dry or sweet, it's actually not that simple; Japanese sake has very complex and subtle flavors and unsurprisingly suits not only Japanese food, capable of drawing out the natural flavors of food while complementing seafood and fermented foods, which are staples in Japanese cuisine, but many other cuisines as well, including but not limited to dishes like barbecue, fried chicken, and pasta.
Additionally, another aspect that makes Japanese sake popular is the fact that it contains over 20 different types of amino acids, which are critical compounds that help with a variety of functions. Additionally, unlike beer and whiskey, which are made from barley or wheat, Japanese sake warms up the body, making it great for those who don't like the chill they feel when drinking.
Japanese sake has become increasingly popular internationally over the years, with some reports indicating that in 2020, the U.S. was actually the largest importer of sake, at over 5 million liters (roughly 1.32 million gallons) imported from Japan! Moreover, there's been an increase in American sake breweries popping up over the years, with roughly 20 or so American breweries currently in existence.
Since sake is made predominantly from rice, people often think that it's high in calories, but it's actually not really the case, with only about 100 calories for every 100 ml. For reference, beer usually has about roughly 44 calories, red wine has about 80 to 85 calories, while whiskey has about 230 to 240 calories for every 100 ml.
Since sake is meant to be sipped and enjoyed slowly, you probably don't need to worry too much about calories.
Similar to how there's a wide range of wines, such as Bordeaux, pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon, or merlot, for example, Japanese sake also has various types, like junmai, honjozo, ginjo, and junmai-daiginjo, and it can be pretty confusing to know what the difference is. Broadly speaking, there are eight different types of Japanese sake.
Unline wine, which is classified by the type of grapes it's made from, Japanese sake isn't classified by the type of rice it uses; rather, it's classified by the following two major factors:
Rice is polished to remove the outer layers of unwanted fats and proteins to expose the starchy core of the rice, where sake gets most of its fragrance and aromas from.
Junmai Daiginjo is considered to be at the pinnacle of the Japanese sake hierarchy, since it uses rice grains that have been polished to 50% or smaller of their original size, making it more expensive to produce, but in turn, offers complex and intricate flavors.
While many believe that Junmai Daiginjo sake is the best sake, it doesn't mean that everyone will enjoy it. Things like tastes and how sake is best enjoyed are completely subjective, after all.
What's most important is to not get caught up by labels, and enjoy what suits your own preferences. When you start to develop your palate and begin to have a better understanding of what type of sake you enjoy the most, you'll be able to enjoy Japanese sake even more.
Here, we'll explain some things to consider when choosing a Japanese sake that best suits your preferences.
Sake is generally thought of as being either dry or sweet. To figure this out for a given sake, it's best to take a look at the Sake Meter Level (SMV) and its acidity.
The SMV basically is an indicator of how much sugar is found in the sake. A general rule of thumb is that positive numbers are dry, and negative numbers are sweet. If you're looking for a dry sake, look for something with an SMV of +4.0 or above. On the other hand, if you're looking for a sweeter sake, look for anything around -2.0 or below to really taste the sweetness.
Additionally, the number of amino acids found in a sake, which is indicated by its acidity, can have an effect on its richness and depth. If two sakes had the same SMV, but a higher numbers for its acidity, it's likely to be a rich and dry sake, while a smaller number would indicate that it's a crisp and sweet sake. Sake usually has an acidity of around 1.4 to 1.6.
Check the links below for articles specifically on sweet and dry sake for more information!
Even with the same SMV, if a sake is particularly high in acidity, it can cancel out any sweetness and make the sake taste rich, rather than sweet. Lower acidity can offer a sharper taste.
A major element when it comes to enjoying sake, or any alcohol, for that matter, is how well it pairs with certain dishes. If you're going to choose a bottle of sake, you might as well look for something that can complement your food, right? In this section, we'll break down how to pair sake.
As explained earlier, junmai sake is made only from rice and koji, a type of fungus used to ferment the rice. This means that junmai tends to be rich in flavor, allowing you to taste the sweetness and savoriness of the rice. With this line of thought, it can be said that any dish that pairs particularly well with white rice will complement junmai sake well, too.
Junmai sake will pair well with:
Junmai sake is often rich enough in flavor that it can be enjoyed by itself, so it's best to pair junmake sake with dishes that are heavily seasoned so that they can both complement each other.
While ginjo sake tastes similar to junmai, it tends to have a lighter, more refreshing taste, pairing well with simple and light dishes that make full use of the natural flavor of its ingredients. Its refreshing mouthfeel also makes it great as a palate cleanser!
Ginjo sake pairs well with:
While junmai has a prominent rice flavor, making it taste more or less what you'd expect out of a drink made from rice, ginjo has more of a fruity and refreshing taste that pairs great with dishes like white meat.
Compared to junmai or ginjo sake, since honjozo sake is made with alcohol added to it, it tends to taste boozier, and often has a sharper and more bitter taste. Many honjozo sake can neither be described as dry nor sweet, and this makes it easy to pair them with all sorts of dishes, both light and heavy.
Of the three major types of sake, honjozo is usually the most affordable, and I've noticed that the more knowledgeable a person is about sake, the less they gravitate towards honjozo. However, there are some honjozo sake that can really take you by surprise with how delicious they can be, like Gakki Masamune, as featured in this article!
If you're looking for a sake with fruity notes, like pear, apple, or strawberry, look for a sake that uses rice that has been polished to 60% or smaller. These sake offer a rich taste without being too heavy, offering a refreshing sweetness.
The outer shell in a grain of rice contains a large number of lipids. Lipids tend to suppress fruity fragrances, which means that rice that hasn't been polished enough hasn't had enough of those lipids removed, meaning they're not as fragrant. In other words, the smaller the percentage, the more lipids have been removed, making for a more fragrant sake.
If you're a fan of fruity flavors, I also recommend looking for nama sake, or unpasteurized sake. Normally, sake goes through two heating processes to stabilize quality and for long-term storage.
Nama sake doesn't go through this process, allowing it to keep a fresh and fruity flavor. However, it's worth noting that nama sake is less stable, and it can quickly lose its flavor. Make sure to keep nama sake chilled, and finish the bottle as quickly as you can after opening it.
Japanese sake is often made by local breweries, made to best pair with local dishes and cuisines.
For example, sake found in the inland regions, which traditionally consume more mountain herbs and vegetables, as well as the Tohoku region, brew sake that's higher in acidity. On the other hand, coastal regions tend to make lighter and refreshing sake to pair better with seafood. Additionally, in regions that are abundant in citrus crops, such as Shikoku, you'll find thicker sake with a higher viscosity.
As a general rule of thumb, though, while there are some exceptions, the more north you go, the dryer the sake, and the more south you go, the sweeter the sake.
Regions that are close to each other often use the same yeasts, water, and rice, so they'll have similar flavors. Still, enjoying and comparing the regionality of sake is definitely a great way to explore Japan and sake culture.
It goes without saying that a major component of sake is rice. Similar to wine and grapes, the type of rice used can greatly affect how a sake tastes. Although Yamada Nishiki is the most common type of rice used, there are several other brands of rice used to brew sake.
Major rice types:
It can be pretty difficult to pick up on the different flavors of rice, especially if you're new to sake. Some breweries offer variations of the same sake that are all made with the same ingredients and processes but use different strains of rice, making it easier to identify the difference.
When comparing the flavors of rice, it might be best to try different sake that uses different types of rice.
Products | Image | Click to purchase | Key features | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Asahi Shuzo Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 45 | ![]() | The Best Overall Sake With Deliciously Sweet and Fragrant Flavors | |
2 | Nishida Shuzo Denshu Tokubetsu Junmaishu | ![]() | Sweet Fragrance With a Dry Taste | |
3 | Saiya Shuzoten Yuki no Bosha Junmai Ginjo | ![]() | An Acidic and Bitter Sake That Pairs Well With Italian Food | |
4 | Nanbu Bijin Nanbu Bijin Tokubetsu Junmaishu | ![]() | A Rich Sake With a Combination of Dry and Sweet Flavors | |
5 | Asahi Shuzo Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 23 | ![]() | A Rounded Sweetness With Refreshing Citrus Notes | |
6 | Ookichi Daikichi Honten Gakki Masamune Honjozo Nakadori | ![]() | Fruity but Bitter Flavors Pairing Well With Sashimi | |
7 | Kobayashi Shuzo Hou Ou Biden Junmai Ginjo Unfiltered Raw Sake | ![]() | A Dry Sake With a Sweet Fragrance | |
8 | Kamenoi Shuzo Kudoki Jozu Junmai Daiginjo | ![]() | A Sake With Deep, Rich Flavors, but Also Has a Refreshing Side | |
9 | Hakkai Shuzo Hakkaisan Tokubetsu Honjozo | ![]() | A Dry Sake That Isn’t Too Sharp and Rich in Flavor | |
10 | Ichinokura Himezen | ![]() | A Sweet and Tangy Dessert Sake |
Asahi Shuzo's Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 45 claims to offer the delicate sweetness and floral fragrances of rice. This sake has 16% alcohol content and features rice that has been polished to 45% of its original size.
Fragrance-wise, when we brought the glass to our noses, we were instantly met with a refined, sweet and fruity fragrance, and upon entering the mouth, we were delighted to find an almost strawberry-esque sweetness.
It was so fragrant that we wanted to keep the sake in our mouths for a while before swallowing it. The flavors were rich but the sake had a light mouthfeel to it, making it easy to drink.
Since it didn't have an overpoweringly alcoholic taste to it, we think it'll be great even for those who've never had sake before. We think it's not just great to enjoy on its own, but it's also able to elevate meals with its floral flavors, making it a versatile Japanese sake.
Denshu Tokubetsu Junmaishu is made by Nishida Shuzo, the only sake brewery in Aomori Prefecture, located in the northernmost part of Japan's main island of Honshu. With 16% alcohol content, this product offers a dry mouthfeel with delicious rice flavors.
Upon entering the mouth, we tasted refreshingly fruity notes like apple and melon, followed by an ever-so-slight spiciness and bitterness at the tip of our tongues, earning praise from both fans of sweet and dry sakes.
While in the mouth, we were delighted by its light, fruity flavors, but upon swallowing the sake, we found the sake to have a mellow richness to it that didn't overstay its welcome, ending on a dry note in our throats.
Since we didn't feel like this sake was too heavy after having quite a few test glasses, we think it's best for those who seek a sake that keeps on giving, keeping the taste buds on their toes with its fruity and fragrant aromas, rich flavor, and light spice notes.
Saiya Shuzoten's Yuki no Bosha Junmai Ginjo is an unfiltered sake with no added water, made only with natural yeast. With roughly 16 to 17% alcohol content, it's slightly sweet and offers hints of apple notes.
We thought that the fragrance did indeed have a refreshing fruitiness combined with the sweet scent of rice. Upon entering the mouth, at first we were met with a mellow sweetness, but this was followed by a tingling spiciness and acidity, which we thought made this overall more of a dry sake.
We also tasted a muscat-like fragrance and bitterness, with some of our testers commenting that it's almost like a Japanese-style wine. The mouthfeel of this sake was incredibly light, like melted snow water, and didn't have overpoweringly strong scents of flavors.
When swallowed, we enjoyed the delicious rice flavors, but the aftertaste was more rich than we had expected, making its taste quite unique. Given its light and sweet scent, as well as its slight acidity and bitterness that stimulates the tongue, we think it would be great paired with acidic, tomato-based Italian dishes.
Nanbu Bijin Tokubetsu Junmaishu has about 15 to 16% alcohol and was brewed as a sake to be enjoyed with a variety of meals. This sake also won a variety of accolades, including being crowned champion at The International Wine Challenge Sake Champions in 2017. It's also the world's first certified vegan sake!
We noticed a fresh, apple-like fragrance. When we took a sip, there was a sharp dryness to it, but this quickly changed to a fruity and sweet taste.
With some testers commenting that it has a rich, mellow sweetness and still others commenting that it has a prominent acidity and spiciness, this sake left people divided in terms of taste. Still, its flavors were well-balanced, with complex, multi-layered notes, so we think it's a great sake enjoyed on its own.
This sake is great for those looking for a heavy and fragrant bottle. Since it can be described as both dry and sweet, this is also a versatile sake that is sure to please fans of both.
Asahi Shuzo's Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 23 uses Yamada Nishiki rice that has been polished down to an astonishing 23% of its original size. With 16% alcohol content, Asahi Shuzo claims this sake has a honey-like sweetness and aftertaste.
The fragrance of this sake alone was telling of how sweet it is, and indeed, after taking a sip, we found this sake to have a sweetness that was round and mellow.
Flavor-wise, it was rich and fragrant, but we also noted how its mouthfeel was light and refreshing, with hints of citrus.
This sake is great paired with meals but also makes for a winning combination with Japanese sweets, and will likely complement the sweetness of the sweets while maintaining its delicate flavor profile, finishing off with a neat and refreshing aftertaste.
Ooki Daikichi Honten's Gakki Masamune Honjozo Nakadori balances sweetness and acidity and has an alcohol content of 16%. This brand was already well-established in Fukushima Prefecture but is recently becoming increasingly popular among sake enthusiasts as deliciousness rewrites all the rules of honjozo sake.
This sake has a reputation for being similar in taste to junmai sake, with its fragrant fruitiness, despite its added alcohol. We tasted apple notes as well as a sharp alcoholic spiciness.
Our sweet-toothed testers commented that since it was so dry and sharp, they quickly swallowed the sake without taking the time to enjoy its richness. On the other hand, our testers who are fans of dry sake commented that it has a well-balanced, refreshing taste, indicating that depending on your tastes, this leaves a wildly different impression.
While we overall agreed that this sake has a fruity sweetness, its bitterness brings it all together. We thought the sharp and dry taste of this sake is great paired with seafood since it'll help reduce some of that fishy taste.
Kobayashi Shuzo's Hou Ou Biden Junmai Ginjo Unfiltered Raw Sake is brewed to be a dry sake that you can keep drinking. With an alcohol content of about 16 to 17%, the brewery claims that this sake balances the sweetness and acidity of rice and has a hint of fruitiness to it.
When we brought the glasses to our noses, we first noticed this sake's rich sweet scent and fruitiness. When we took a sip, we found that the liquid itself was slightly thick, and tasted strongly of sweet rice.
The sake has a richness that left us wanting to leave it in our mouths for a moment, but we also noticed some sharp tingling and a trace of bitterness to it as well, which we felt made this a dry sake overall. However, while it did taste dry on the tongue, it left a sweet fragrance when exhaled through the nose, earning praise from our testers who are usually fans of sweet sake.
This sake has a rich flavor but also a sharp dryness, and we thought that the brewery's claim of it being a dry sake that you can keep on giving rang true. We'd recommend this to fans of sweet sake, thanks to its sweet fragrance.
Kamenoi Shuzo's Kudoki Jozu Junmai Daiginjo is the brewery's most shipped product. It has an alcohol content of 16 to 17% and has a floral fragrance and fruity flavor.
Nearly all of our testers commented that it has a rich and deep flavor with a light and refreshing fruity fragrance.
Upon taking a sip, we were delighted with this sake's round and mellow sweetness that spread throughout our mouths. Although this is indeed a sweet sake with rich flavors, it also has a muscat-like freshness and slight acidity, making it easy to have multiple glasses.
If you're searching for a fruity and refreshing sweet sake, this is definitely a sake to consider. This will also pair well with cheeses since it'll help bring out more of the sake's richness.
Hakkai Shuzo's Hakkaisan Tokubetsu Honjozo has an alcohol content of 15.5% and uses rice that has been polished to 55%. While it's a light and dry sake, it has a gentle mouthfeel.
This sake offered a rich fragrance that was similar to that of a sweet sake, but upon taking a sip, our mouths were flooded with the fragrance of rice, combined with a slightly bitter and dry taste.
While we were hardly able to notice any sweetness or fruitiness, we did pick up on the fragrance and flavor of rice in full. However, it wasn't too prominent, leaving us with the impression that this is a sake that is best enjoyed for its crisp taste and the feeling of it going down the throat.
This sake is best for those who are looking for a bottle that offers a dry and refreshing flavor while still enabling you to enjoy the rice flavors, rather than a rich and heavily fragrant sake. This would pair great with heavily seasoned dishes or any other dishes that you might eat with white rice.
Ichinokura's Himezen was created after the brewery did some R&D into how to get non-sake drinkers to enjoy sake. With a relatively low alcohol content of 8%, this sake is delectably sweet, tangy, and easy to drink.
When bringing the glass to our noses, we almost couldn't pick up on any fragrances. Upon taking a sip, though, we were first met by strong acidic notes, which was then followed by a sweetness that almost reminded us of gummies.
After taking a sip, we found that this sake actually was quite fragrant, with some notes of grainy rice mixed with a delightfully refreshing scent that reminded us of melted citrus sorbet. This dessert-like sake is definitely one-of-a-kind in almost every aspect.
Even if you're not a big fan of sake or prefer sweet cocktails, this is a sake that is definitely worth trying once. The well-balanced sweetness and acidity will likely be further drawn out when paired with desserts or fruit!
We gathered the most popular sake on e-commerce sites popular in Japan like Amazon, Rakuten, and Yahoo! Shopping, and tested them all.
We tested each sake for the following:
In order to determine the best Japanese sake, we tested each product for how delicious it was, focusing on their flavor and fragrance.
We gathered five testers from our Japanese editorial team who are fans of dry sake, and five testers who are fans of sweet sake, and conducted a blind taste test for all products.
※For the sake of consistency and fairness, all the sake were tested after being chilled.
Another fun way to enjoy sake is to try it as a cocktail base. Japanese sake can become a totally different animal depending on the way you drink it.
Here are two easy recipes for sake cocktails. One is the Samurai on the Rocks, which is great for when you want to feel refreshed, and the other is called a Hot Lemon, a drink that's perfect for winding down.
Samurai on the Rocks
Hot Lemon
Sake is not meant to be shot. While sake is often served in small cups known as ochoko in Japanese, these are not shot glasses. Sake, similar to wine, is meant to be sipped and enjoyed slowly, not knocked back.
Generally, since it's only made with water, rice, yeast, and koji fungus, Japanese sake is for the most part, vegan. However, it's quite rare to find Japanese sake that's certified vegan, but as sake breweries are beginning to export outside of Japan, there's a growing number of breweries that are certified vegan, like Nanbu Bijin.
While Japanese sake is often served chilled, just because a sake is served hot doesn't mean it's low-quality. In fact, some high-end breweries recommend drinking their sake either chilled or warm, since these will offer drastically different experiences. Warming up sake can open up new flavors, and is a great way to enjoy sake on a cold, snowy night.
Now that you've looked at the 10 best Japanese sake online, here's some more useful articles for fans of Japanese alcohol, including separate articles for sweet sake and dry sake.
No. 1: Asahi Shuzo|Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 45
No. 2: Nishida Shuzo|Denshu Tokubetsu Junmaishu
No. 3: Saiya Shuzoten|Yuki no Bosha Junmai Ginjo
No. 4: Nanbu Bijin|Nanbu Bijin Tokubetsu Junmaishu
No. 5: Asahi Shuzo|Dassai Junmai Daiginjo 23
View Full RankingThe descriptions of each product are referenced from content available on manufacturer, brand, and e-commerce sites.
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