The Thing About Soju...

Not my photo

  There is nothing beautiful about Soju. There just isn't.

   Soju is an alcoholic drink made from distilled rice and is basically Korea's Vodka. This stuff looks like water and tastes like crap. I can't explain it any other way, the taste is just completely terrible. Rubbing alcohol seems preferable to this stuff. It is popular, however, because it is incredibly cheap.

   Soju is also incredibly cunning. You drink your first shot, it tastes terrible, but then you get over it and think, "Huh... that isn't so bad. What a weak drink." When the bottle is finished, you and your drinking buddy look at each other and have a few seconds of clarity, then things start going down hill after that. Before you know it you are speaking Korean you didn't know you knew, in a hole in the wall bar you don't remember how you got to, with Koreans you didn't know you've ever met. Then the next morning you wake up in your room (if you're lucky) with a hang over like you have never experienced before.

   There is nothing beautiful about Soju... Or is there?

   For me, Soju is neither great tasting, nor much fun to deal with the next day. But the thing about Soju is that there is something special about it that has nothing to do with the taste or the amount of alcohol. Instead it has the power to bring friends together. My experiences with Soju have simply been experiences with friends. I have met a lot of awesome people, and had many awesome conversations over a bottle of Soju. Soju is powerful in so many ways, but the one thing it excels in is fostering memorable nights with unforgettable friends.

Anything that powerful is good in my book.

Soju is powerful.

Soju is beautiful.