Tea

Green tea (correctly ryokucha) is so universal in Japan that it is usually simply called "tea" (ocha) or "Japanese tea" (nihoncha). It is drunk without milk or sugar.
There are several varieties. Among these are:
Genmaicha ("brown rice tea") is green tea combined with roasted brown rice. It was originally drunk by the poor, as the rice served as a filler and reduced the price of the tea. It has a mild flavour, combining the fresh grassy taste of green tea with the nutty flavor of the rice.
Matcha is the fine, powdered green tea used particularly in the Tea ceremony. It is also used to dye and flavour foods such as mochi rice cakes, soba noodles, and even green tea ice cream. Matcha is generally expensive compared to other green teas.

Ko cha is the name given to the (black) tea more commonly known in the UK.

Beer

Several makes of Japanese beer are distributed and well-known worldwide, eg. Sapporo, Asahi, Kirin.
Beer brewing started in the Edo period, by and for traders and sailors from the Netherlands. Japanese beer is therefore high-quality "Continental" blonde beer, around 5% alcohol.
In addition to the usual sales outlets of supermarkets, convenience stores and train station kiosks, beer is also sold from vending machines in the street. These vending machines can sell alcohol and cigarettes until 11pm. Some vending machines have motion-activated advertising: displays on small integral TV screens which come to life as you walk past, playing beer commercials and jingles that are seen on TV.
Although the laws on the sale and consumption of alcohol are relatively liberal, Japan's laws against driving a vehicle or riding a bicycle after or during the consumption of alcohol are strict.

Sake

Sake (pronounced saké) is usually considered as a "rice wine", but the way it is made by multiple fermentation brewing process is more characteristic of beer than wine. Alcohol strength is usually around 15-18%.

There are two basic types: futsu-shu (normal or "table" sake), and tokutei meishōshu (premium or "special designation" sake).
The "special designation" sakes (only about 20% of the total market) are produced by traditional, labour-intensive techniques at breweries throughout Japan. The type and grade of the sake is distinguished by the amount of milling which the rice undergoes. To make the finest sake, up to 50-65% of the rice grain is removed in the milling process.

Serving: sake can be served cold, warm or hot, depending on the preference of the drinker, the quality of the sake and the season. Typically, sake is drunk hot in winter and cold in summer. Heating improves the drinkability of an indifferent sake; makers of high-quality sake boast of the clean dry taste of their product when drunk chilled. The most common way to serve sake outside Japan is to heat it to body temperature (37°C), but professional sake tasters prefer room temperature (20°C), and chilled sake (10°C) is growing in popularity.
Sake is served in shallow cups, called a choko. Usually sake is poured into the choko from ceramic flasks called tokkuri.
A traditional way to drink sake is from a masu, a special wooden box traditionally made of Japanese Cypress. The aroma of the wood is supposed to enhance the flavour.

Storage: sake is best kept in a cool dark place, as prolonged exposure to heat or direct light spoils it. Sake stored at room temperature is best consumed within a few months of purchase.
After opening, sake is best drunk within 2-3 hours. Putting the bottle in the refrigerator will keep it drinkable for about 2 days.

Shochu

This is a distilled alcoholic drink, usually around 25% alcohol by volume, making it weaker than whisky, but stronger than wine, beer or sake.
It originates from the south of Japan: Kyushu and the Okinawa Islands.
It is distilled, rather than brewed like sake (hence its greater strength) and the taste is often described as "nutty" or "earthy". The ingredient added to the second stage of the fermentation process determines the variety: barley, rice, soba, potato, brown sugar, even sesame or chestnut. Some of the more exotic are local specialities. The traditional Awamori shochu of Okinawa is made from rice.
Shochu can be drunk in several ways: as it is; with ice; diluted with cold or hot water (known as oyu-wari; mixed with tea or fruit juice; or as chuhai, a sparkling drink consisting of shochu and friut flavour such as lemon, grapefruit or apple. Canned chuhai drinks are also sold in vending machines.
From being an old man's drink, shochu has recently become trendy, particularly among young women as a low-calorie drink with health benefits.