Among the large number of yeasts, yeasts used for sake brewing are called sake yeast and more than eighty percent of the varieties are Saccharomyces cerevisiae (budding yeast).
また多種多様な酵母のなかで日本酒の醸造に用いられる酵母を清酒酵母といい、種は80%以上がSaccharomycescerevisiae（出芽酵母）である。