It’s time to tackle the elephant in the koji room. Often when talking about sake we get asked, “Is sake good for you? Or is sake bad for you?” And honestly, it’s challenging to answer. Next thing you know, you’re reading medical journals and scientific articles at 3 a.m. with a bottle of “genshu” (undiluted sake) by your side, your cat splayed out over the printouts on your desk, and you find yourself staring at the wall on which you’ve scrawled the old proverb, 酒は百薬の長 (“sake wa hyakuyaku no cho”), “Alcohol surpasses any medicine.” At least you would be if you didn’t have this article. Instead, we’ve done that for you and made it nice and easy to read.
Sake is poured into small cups beside “masu,” cubic wooden vessels originally used for measuring rice that now serve as sake cups.
Sake, or “nihonshu,” is a brewed alcoholic beverage made from rice, koji (a beneficial mold), water and yeast. Sometimes there’s a very small percentage of brewer’s alcohol involved, but that’s it. Premium sake contains no additives, no preservatives, no sulfites, no nitrates, no dyes or other funky stuff. (Check out our Sake Guide to dive in a little deeper.)
On the whole, though, the NRIB states that most sake falls within the range of 0.5-4.2 grams per 100 milliliters. When it comes to sake sugar content versus wine or beer, sake generally contains more sugar, although it ultimately depends on the individual bottle.
Is sake healthier than wine?
If we compare the two based on the above charts and take into consideration some additional components that the two beverages have on a chemical level, it’s a bit of a toss up. Wine has fewer calories, but more of certain sugars and more sodium than sake. Ultimately, they both have pros and cons, and trying to determine which is better for you leads to a rabbit hole full of arguments and articles that claim to have irrefutable evidence that their team is better.
7 key health benefits for sake
There are tons of folk tales surrounding the benefits of sake, from it being good for digestion to it making you wildly attractive, but we want to get to the truth of it. We found seven health benefits that we think are the key attractions for sake.
Sake 101 (intro to sake types)
FAQ
Is sake the healthiest alcohol?
What has more sugar wine or sake?
Does sake raise blood sugar?
Is sake bad for you on a diet?
How much sugar is in sake?
In comparison, other alcoholic beverages like beer and wine contain 13 and 3.5 grams of carbohydrates and 3.8 and 0.1 grams of sugar per 1 ounce serving, respectively. Sake’s low sugar content means it is unlikely to cause sugar crashes or spikes in blood sugar levels. It also won’t cause weight gain, as some alcoholic beverages can.
Does Coke No Sugar contain sugar?
Coke No Sugar doesn’t contain sugar. Ingredients of Zero Coke are carbonated Water, caramel color, phosphoric acid, natural flavorings, and sodium citrates. It taste sweet because it contain artificial sweeteners like aspartame and acesulfame-K.
Does sake have amino acids?
Other alcohols also have some amino acids in them, being the building blocks of protein and all, but the key thing about sake is that it contains significantly more than the rest. Compared to white wine, sake contains approximately 10 times the amount of glutamic acid, a major component in umami flavors.
How many calories are in sake?
Most of the calories come from alcohol, a few from the carbs. The numbers Japan’s National Research Institute of Brewing reports are slightly different: 105 calories and 0.5 to 4.2 grams of sugar. Generally speaking, while sake is higher in glucose compared to other alcoholic drinks, it’s lower in fructose.