The Meiji Government, suffering from economic difficulties that had lingered since the Seinan War as well as peasants' resistance against the land-tax reform, raised tax on sake repeatedly because the sake brewing industry generated higher production value than any other industries in Japan at that time and sake is almost free from problems concerning customs duty as most of it was consumed within the country.
西南戦争以後の財政難と地租改正に対する農民の抵抗に悩まされた明治政府は、当時の日本の工業で最も生産額が多く、かつほとんどが国内消費に回されていて関税の問題も薄い日本酒に対する増税を度々行った。