Tofu may be a favourite of vegetarians around the world, but the soy product will shortly also be on the periphery of wine lovers thanks to the innovative new invention of a tofu-based wine.

Researchers from the National University of Singapore have successfully created an alcoholic beverage out of tofu whey, as reported by CNET. The drink has been named ‘Sachi’, which translates to ‘blossoming wisdom’ in Japanese and refers to the drink’s fruity and floral taste.

Sachi takes three weeks to make and contains an alcohol content of seven to eight percent, which is light by typical standards, and a high level of calcium, probiotics and antioxidants. These all contribute to the myriad of health benefits the wine claims to offer, including the ability to help improve bone health, heart health and prevent cancer.

But Sachi isn’t just good for the body, but good for the environment. The drink is created from waste – leftover liquid tofu whey to be precise, which is normally thrown straight into the bin.

“The health benefits associated with soy products, coupled with changing preferences towards vegetarian diets, have fuelled the growth of tofu production, [increasing] the amount of tofu whey … proportionally,” Associate Professor Liu Shao Quan told CNET of his inspiration for the year-long experimentation with the drink. “Alcoholic fermentation can serve as an alternative method to convert tofu whey into food products that can be consumed directly,” he continues of his resulting discovery.