"Sake" has been widely enjoyed as an alcoholic drink in Japan. With an alcoholic strength similar to the popular rice-wine, Japanese researchers have come up with a new type of beverage using a special ingredient. Terrence Terashima tells us more.

TERRENCE TERASHIMA TSUKUBA CITY "Many Japanese would be looking forward for autumn to taste the newly harvested rice. Some would be looking forward for 'Sake' the Japanese rice wine made out of rice. There are number of alcoholic beverages in Japan made out of rice fruits and vegetables. But Japanese scientists came up an idea to make an alcoholic beverage out of something totally unexpected. Wood!"

It may sound odd to use a non-eatable ingredient to produce an alcoholic drink. But it has a distinct aroma, and qualities from the wood used. Much like that from aged wooden barrels in the distilleries, a strong aroma from cedars, sweet cent from cherries, and a fruity character from a birch.

Until now wood was used to produce Bioethanol, highly toxic for human consumption.

But the researchers invented a method, which involves pulverizing wood into a creamy paste to start the fermentation process using yeast and enzymes.

Then distilling it to produce a drinkable beverage.

YUICHIRO OTSUKA SENIOR RESEARCHER AT FORESTRY&FOREST PRODUCTS RESEARCH INSTITUTE "Four kilograms of this cedar block can produce approximately 5 bottles of beverage, with around 15 percent alcohol, like wine, and if you take it up to 40 percent, an equivalent to a whiskey, these can produce two 720 ml bottles."

Unfortunately, the products have not been cleared for safety, to have a taste. It still has to go through a number of strict national standard testing to be deemed safe.

But the researchers are confident, and aimed to clear these testing within three years.

YUICHIRO OTSUKA SENIOR RESEARCHER AT FORESTRY&FOREST PRODUCTS RESEARCH INSTITUTE "We are a national research institute, so we can not sell any products. So for the moment we are aiming to clear the regulations and ready for consumption within 3 three years. And hopefully we can find a partner from the private sector to produce and sell the product."

Yuichiro Otsuka is now looking for an opportunity to make a drink out of an Oak from an old whiskey barrel which might have added flavor from its content. Terrence Terashima, CGTN Tsukuba City.