Sake is an alcoholic beverage of Japanese origin that is made from fermented rice. Sake is sometimes called "rice wine" but the brewing process is more as rice beer, converting starch to sugar for the fermentation process. In the Japanese language, the word "sake" generally refers to any alcoholic drink, while the beverage called "sake" in English is usually termed nihonshu (日本酒, "Japanese liquor"). Under Japanese liquor laws, sake is labelled with the word "seishu" (清酒, "clear liquor"), a synonym less commonly used colloquially.
​