4 parts · 15 lessons
Sake starts with rice, water, kōji and yeast. What happens next explains a lot about the drink in your glass—and makes those unfamiliar label terms much less mysterious. This WSET Level 1 Sake guide brings the pieces together in 15 free lessons.
Read from the beginning, dip into a style you want to understand, or head straight to revision. You’ll find plain-language explanations, practical comparisons and original practice questions along the way.
Start with Lesson 1 or jump to the revision guide and two practice exams.
Part 1
Understand sake and how it is made
Begin with the glass, then work back through rice, kōji and fermentation. These lessons connect the ingredients and brewing choices with what you taste.
- How to Understand and Describe Sake: A WSET Level 1 Beginner’s Guide
Start with what sake is, then find familiar words for its aromas, sweetness, acidity and texture.
- Sake Rice Explained: Rice Polishing, Washing, Soaking, and Steaming
Follow rice from polishing to steaming, and see why preparation matters before brewing begins.
- Kōji Explained: How Mould Turns Rice Starch into Sugar
Meet kōji, the mould that helps turn rice starch into the sugar yeast needs.
- Sake Fermentation Explained: Yeast, Fermentation Starters, and Temperature
Connect yeast, the fermentation starter and temperature with the aromas and alcohol in your glass.
- How Sake Is Finished: Alcohol Addition, Filtration, Dilution, and Pasteurisation
Explore the finishing choices that shape sake, from alcohol addition and filtration to dilution and pasteurisation.
Part 2
Get to know sake grades, labels and styles
Junmai, ginjō, nigori and nama become easier to remember when you can connect each name with how the sake is made. Compare the styles and practise reading the label clues.
- Sake Grades Explained: Futsū-shu, Premium Sake, and Rice Polishing Ratios
Make sense of everyday and premium sake, with polishing ratios that help the grade names fall into place.
- Junmai vs. Honjōzō Sake: Understanding Alcohol Addition
Compare junmai and honjōzō, and understand what added brewing alcohol does.
- Ginjō and Daiginjō Sake Explained: Polishing, Aromas, and Premium Styles
Get to know ginjō and daiginjō through rice polishing, brewing choices and their typical aromas.
- How to Read Sake Labels: Japanese Terms, Grades, and What They Mean
Find your way around Japanese label terms and connect them with the sake styles you have learned.
- Nigori and Sparkling Sake Explained: Cloudiness, Bubbles, and Style
Discover what makes nigori cloudy and sparkling sake bubbly, and how those features affect style.
- Nama and Koshu Sake Explained: Unpasteurised and Matured Styles
Compare fresh, unpasteurised nama with matured koshu, including what each needs in storage.
Part 3
Store, serve and pair with confidence
Put the knowledge to use: keep a bottle fresh, choose a serving temperature and find a comfortable match for dinner.
- How to Store Sake Properly: Freshness, Temperature, and Common Faults
Keep sake fresh by understanding temperature, light, opened bottles and signs that something is wrong.
- How to Serve Sake: Chilled, Warm, Hot, and Traditional Vessels
Choose a serving temperature and vessel that suit the sake, from chilled glasses to warm cups.
- Food and Sake Pairing Explained: Flavor Intensity, Sweetness, and Preference
Use flavour intensity, sweetness and personal preference to make food pairings easier.
Part 4
Put your knowledge to work
Bring the series together, revisit the topics that need another look and try the two practice exams.
- WSET Level 1 Sake Exam: Complete Revision Guide and Practice Examinations
Pull the lessons together with revision tables and two original 30-question practice exams, each with explained answers.
How to use this study guide
If you’re new to sake, follow the lessons in order. Try each lesson’s questions before checking the answers, then revisit the explanation whenever an answer surprises you. Knowing why an answer fits will help more than memorising its letter.
For revision, compare topics that are easy to mix up: polishing and filtration, junmai and honjōzō, or nama and koshu. Save the two full practice exams for a check of what you’ve learned across the series.
You don’t need to buy sake to use these lessons. If you choose to taste, follow your local laws and drink responsibly.
About the series
This is an independent TFE study guide, with no affiliation with or endorsement by WSET. The practice questions are original study material, not official examination questions. Use your course provider’s current materials and the official WSET Level 1 Award in Sake information for qualification requirements.
