Soju Trivia | 40 facts about the Korean beverage

Soju is a clear, colorless distilled alcoholic beverage that is a huge part of Korean culture.

Let’s find out more about it!

1. Soju is a clear, colourless distilled alcoholic beverage of Korean origin.
2. It is usually consumed neat, and its alcohol content varies from about 16.8% to 53% alcohol by volume (ABV).
3. Most brands of soju are made in South Korea.
4. While soju is traditionally made from the grains of rice, wheat, or barley, modern producers often replace rice with other starches, such as potato and sweet potato.
5. This liquor features in the drinking culture of Korea.
6. Soju referring to the heat of distillation, and the second syllable ju (주; 酒) referring to “alcoholic drink”.
7. In 2008, “soju” was included in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary
8. Merriam-Webster dated the word’s appearance in the American English lexicon at 1951.
9. In 2016, the word was included in the Oxford Dictionary of English.
10. Another name for soju is noju “dew liquor”, with its first letter ro “dew” likening the droplets of the collected alcohol during the distilling process to dew-drops.
11. Some soju brand names include iseul (이슬), the native-Korean word for “dew”, or ro, the Sino-Korean word for “dew”.
12. The most important rule in Korean drinking etiquette is that the youngest person in the group pours the drinks for their elders.
13. It does not only apply to age but also to the hierarchy within a company.
14. When pouring alcohol both hands should be used to pour, when receiving alcohol both hands should also be used to hold the glass.
15. There are a number of soju brands directly outside the Korean Peninsula for the ethnic Korean population.
16. Most use rice as the foundation since the price is significantly cheaper than in South Korea. Soju from North and South Korea, from firms like Jinro is also imported.
17. Although beer, whiskey, and wine have been gaining popularity in recent years, soju remains one of the most popular alcoholic beverages in Korea because of its ready availability and relatively low price.
18. More than 3 billion bottles were consumed in South Korea in 2004.
19. In 2006, it was estimated that the average adult Korean (older than 20) had consumed 90 bottles of soju during that year.
20. In 2014, it was reported that South Koreans of drinking age consumed an average of 13.7 shots of spirit per week; the figure for Russia, in second place, was 6.3.
21. By contrast consumption in the U.S. was 3.3 shots, Canada was 2.5, and the U.K. 2.3 shots.
22. While soju is traditionally consumed straight, a few cocktails and mixed drinks use soju as a base spirit. Beer and soju can be mixed to create somaek, a portmanteau of the words soju and maekju (beer).
23. Flavored soju is also available. It is also popular to blend fruits with soju and to drink it in “slushy” form.
24. Another very popular flavored soju is yogurt soju, which is a combination of soju, yogurt, and lemon lime soda.
25. A poktan-ju (“bomb drink”) consists of a shot glass of soju dropped into a pint of beer (similar to a boilermaker); it is drunk quickly.
26. This is similar to the Japanese sake bomb.
27. Soju is sometimes mistakenly referred to as cheongju (청주), a Korean rice wine.
28. Mass-produced soju is also mistaken for Chinese baijiu, a grain liquor, and shōchū, a Japanese liquor.
29. A premium rice soju made in Brooklyn using the traditional method. Has 23 percent alcohol by volume.
30. Soju’setymology links back to Arak, the Levantine drink, and the Goryo people called it Arak-ju (ju means alcoholic drink in Korean).
31. The original brewing methods came to Korea through the Mongols in the 12th century.
32. During Chosun, sojuwas so popular that it affected the national rate of rice consumption and alarmed the government.
33. Itused to be a drink for the upper class
34. There are a ton of Korean songs that have to do with drinking soju!
35. A grape-based soju made in New York State. Has 23 percent alcohol by volume.
36. Only top idols and celebrities model for sojubrands.
37. Drinking sojucomes with a set of proper etiquettes (which are broken as more sojuis consumed).
38. Korean people reportedly drink an average of 13.7 shots per week.
39. Sojuis the drink of choice for any and all occasions, from weddings to funerals, anniversaries to breakups.
40. People from different regions in South Korea prefer different brands of soju.