soju , distilled from grain or other starches, is Korea’s revered national spirit and is imbibed in such heroic quantities throughout the country that it is one of the world’s top-selling spirits by volume. Indeed, an astonishing 3.63 billion little green bottles of the clear distillate are quaffed annually—around ninety of the 360-ml bottles per person.
Soju divides into two main categories, traditional soju, which is pot-distilled from rice, and diluted soju, which is 95 percent ABV column-distilled alcohol from any number of grains or tubers diluted to around 20 percent ABV with water, then slightly sweetened. While traditional soju is showing signs of revival, it is the diluted style that fills all those little bottles and has come to represent the category overall.
Soju is generally consumed neat as a chilled shot. While somewhat akin to vodka in its simplicity and flavor neutrality, its average ABV of 20 percent makes it much easier to drink and an excellent foil to Korea’s robust cuisine. Indeed, the spirit is trending lower in potency as younger generations seek to moderate their alcohol consumption.
Exceedingly affordable, soju is less than two US dollars a bottle at retail in Korea, where it is served at almost every bar and restaurant and is always stocked in supermarkets and corner convenience stores. (Its lower proof also allows soju’s US sale in places that can only serve wine and beer, without the necessity of a costly liquor license.)
Soju is ubiquitous in Korea at family meals and special occasions, but its role in business culture cannot be overstated. Deals are concluded over soju, and it is the fuel of obligatory after-work outings designed to build team spirit. Colleagues will go out on the town, visiting at least three spots—restaurants, bars, and Spirits were first produced on the Korean peninsula during the Mongolian invasion in the thirteenth century. Mongol military encampments in Gaegyeong (now Kaesong), Andong, and Jeju Island became centers of distillation, a distinction these regions retain even today. Korea already had an advanced drinks culture, with variations of brewed rice wine made by every family. Alcohol was seen as a means of achieving communion with ancestral and heavenly gods, and soju, first documented in about 1375, quickly captured the national imagination, first among the aristocracy and ultimately regular people. The process for making traditional soju begins with nuruk, a grain cake (traditionally of rice, barley, and wheat) that is inoculated with the Aspergillus oryzae fungus, which converts starch into fermentable sugar. See Aspergillus oryzae and qu. The cake is then dried and pulverized and mixed with cooked rice, water, and yeast. This mixture ferments for about twelve days to create rice wine, which is then filtered to remove any particles. The clear liquid is distilled in a soju gori, a gourd-shaped, water-cooled internal condensation pot still, often made of ceramic, that is peculiar to Korea. See still, pot. By the seventeenth century, soju had become wildly popular, with thousands of distilleries dotting the landscape and many Koreans of means distilling at home, to the point that the government made frequent attempts to prohibit its manufacture, as a means of preserving the peninsula’s grain supply. Their very frequency indicates their degree of success. Immediately following Japan’s occupation of Korea in 1910, however, a Liquor Tax Act was enacted that effectively outlawed home brewing and distilling and forced many traditional drinks handed down over generations into extinction. The rapid industrialization of Korea would also come into play, especially after 1919, when the Japanese began to introduce column stills and the use of sweet potatoes and cassava or tapioca as base materials. Mass production of soju began in 1924 with Jinro, with its marquee spirit clocking in at 35 percent ABV, and an industry consolidation began. See Jinro. Soju’s low-proof modern incarnation can be traced to the years after the Korean War, when food shortages were rampant and there were further crackdowns on informal distillation. In 1965, the Korean government forbade the distillation of rice, the irreplaceable staple grain. In its place, other starchy ingredients, like sweet potatoes and tapioca, gained new prominence. In 1976, the Korean government mandated one distillery per province, further consolidating the industry. The mandate was reversed twenty years later when it was ruled an unconstitutional infringement on market freedom. Today, the vast majority of soju comes to life via dilution, rather than traditional methods. Soju producers source their alcohol from the Korea Ethanol Supplies Company, where the amounts of production and sales are strictly controlled by law. The very high proof distillate is then diluted with water to bring it to an acceptable proof. Sweeteners, like sugar or stevia, and flavorings, like citric acid, are subtly added to create nuance and differentiation. While the ban on using rice for distillation was lifted in the 1990s, the diluted style of soju continues to dominate Korea’s drinks landscape. With a greater awareness of healthful living and the entry of younger generations into the workforce, soju has become more diluted, with some as low as 17 percent ABV, and fruit-flavored expressions, such as apple, citron, strawberry, peach, and grapefruit, increasingly popular. In fact, Jinro, the largest producer, recently began exporting 16.9 percent ABV to seven overseas markets, including the United States and Japan. The beauty of soju is that it is a complete solution. Prediluted with no hard edges, it is the equivalent of an RTD, and only a shot glass is required. Soju is also enjoyed as the base of à la minute infusions with lemon or cucumber slices, as well as in cocktails. It is especially popular in somaek, a boilermaker that combines soju with maekju (beer). Soju is nearly always enjoyed in conjunction with food, with popular traditional accompaniments such as Soju brands, including Jinro’s Chamisul and Lotte’s Chum Churum, remain ever-popular juggernauts, in both Korea and Koreatowns across America. Hwayo and Andong are reviving the more traditional rice style, as are Tokki and West 32, which originated in New York City (the latter has since relocated to Korea). Today, there is a growing interest in the artisanal approach, with some trendsetting bars in Seoul exclusively offering curated lists of traditional soju to their guests. However, because of the price differential, force of habit, and massive marketing budgets of the incumbents, it will take time and dedication for traditional soju to impact the billions of little green bottles that have come to represent soju for generations of millions of Koreans. Andong Soju Traditional Food Museum. “Soju.” https://www.andongsoju.com:2033/eng/sub1/sub1.asp (accessed March 15, 2021). English, Camper. “Getting Nerdy about Soju.” Alcademics, July 7, 2020. https://www.alcademics.com/2020/07/getting-nerdy-about-soju-production-sticky-rice-nuruk-fermentation-multi-abvs-korean-production.html (accessed March 15, 2021). Melissa. “The History of Soju and Its Modernization.” 10 Magazine, January 12, 2021. https://10mag.com/the-history-of-soju-and-its-modernization/ (accessed March 15, 2021). Park, Hyunhee. Soju: A Global History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2021. By: Michael AnstendigOrigins and History