In the making of Japanese beer the koji has something of the same function as mold. The actual brewing is accomplished by using boiled rice, koji and water. The enzym of the koji acts on this mixture and converts the starch into sugar and thus prepares it for fermentation. The fermented liquor is separated from the solid ingredients, filtered, sterilized and stored. Under the Japanese law also a small quantity of salicylic acid may be used for preserving the sake. The beer thus produced is the national beverage of Japan. Quite a great deal of it is sent into the United States for the use of the citizens of Japan who are residents of this country. In Japan the price of the sake varies from 7 to 24 cents per liter according to its quality. The sake is usually warmed and drunk from a small dish resembling a saucer.