Rice wine

Rice wine is a generic term for an alcoholic beverage fermented and possibly distilled from rice, traditionally consumed in East Asia, Southeast Asia and South Asia. Rice wine is made by the fermentation of rice starch that has been converted to sugars. Microbes are the source of the enzymes that convert the starches to sugar. Sake in Japan, Mijiu in China, and Cheongju and Makgeolli in Korea are some of the most notable types of rice wine.

Rice wine typically has an alcohol content of 18–25% ABV. Rice wines are used in East Asian, Southeast Asian and South Asian gastronomy at formal dinners and banquets and in cooking.