日本酒

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 日本酒 is read as にほんしゅ and is a noun for sake, the traditional Japanese alcoholic drink brewed primarily from rice.
• Basic usage: Drinking a small amount of sake appears in 日本酒を飲む, while brewing sake from rice appears in 米から日本酒を造る.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• A brewed rice-based drink
  • Although the name can look like a general label for Japanese alcohol, in ordinary use it refers specifically to sake.
• Difference from 焼酎
  • Unlike shochu, which is produced by distillation, sake is brewed through fermentation and filtration.