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Soju (Hangul 소주; Hanja 燒酒) is a distilled beverage native to Korea.

Most brands of modern soju are made in South Korea. Though traditionally made from rice, most major brands supplement or even replace the rice with other starches such as potato, wheat, barley, sweet potato, or tapioca (called dangmil in Korean). Soju is clear in colour and typically varies in alcohol content from about 20% to about 45% alcohol by volume (ABV), with 20% ABV being most common. Its taste is comparable to vodka, though often slightly sweeter because of the sugars added in the manufacturing process. It is widely consumed, in part, because of its relatively low price. A typical 300mL bottle of soju costs the consumer 1,000 to 3,000 South Korean Won (roughly $1 to $3 United States Dollars.)

Soju was first distilled around 1300s during the Mongol invasions of Korea. The Mongols had acquired the technique of distilling arak from the Persians during their invasion of Central Asia/Middle East around 1256, then it was subsequently introduced to Koreans and distilleries were set up around the city of Kaesong. Indeed, in the area surrounding Kaesong, soju is known as arak-ju (hangul: 아락주).

From 1965 until 1991, in order to alleviate rice shortages, the Korean government prohibited the traditional direct distillation of soju from fermented grain. Instead, highly distilled ethanol from any source was mixed with water and flavorings to create diluted soju . Although the prohibition had been lifted, cheap soju continues to be made this way. The Korean government regulates the alcohol content of diluted soju to less than 35%.

Several regions have resumed manufacturing soju from the traditional distillation of grain, resulting in distilled soju. Soju from Andong is the most famous of all, with an ABV around 45%.

Brands

Jinro is the largest manufacturer of soju. (76 million cases sold in 2008). The most popular variety of soju is currently Chamisul (참 이슬 – literally meaning “real dew”), a quadruple-filtered soju produced by Jinro, but recently Cheoum Cheoreom (처음처럼 – “like the first time”) of Lotte (롯데) is raising its market share. However, the most popular brands vary by region. In Busan, C1 Soju (시원 소주) is the local and most popular brand. The Daegu Metropolitan Area has its own soju manufacturer, Kumbokju with the popular brand Charm (참). On the island state of Jeju-do, Hala Soju is the most common brand; being named after the island’s main mountain Mt. Hala. In Gyeongsangnam-do and Ulsan, the most popular is White Soju (hangul: 화이트소주), produced by Muhak in Masan. However, as soon as one crosses the border from Ulsan north to Gyeongju in Gyeongsangbuk-do, it is almost impossible to buy White Soju and instead the most popular is Chamisul and Charm. One explanation for this regionalization of soju relates to the bottle recycling system in use. To keep prices low, used bottles are usually retained by liquor vendors and returned to the company for cleaning and reuse. Nationwide distribution of a single brand of soju would result in a higher price (due to bottling costs), reducing that product’s market competitiveness.

Etiquette

Soju is usually drunk in group gatherings while eating, unmixed and portioned into individual shot glasses. It is against traditional custom in Korea to fill one’s own glass. Instead, it must be filled by someone else at the table. This promotes a spirit of thoughtfulness and camaraderie.

In Korean culture, using two hands to offer and accept items is considered an act of respect. Accordingly, if one’s glass is going to be filled by a superior, one should hold the glass with both hands. Similarly, when pouring soju for an elder, one holds the bottle with both hands.

To pour a drink, hold the bottle in the right hand with the left hand touching the right forearm or elbow; this peculiar arm position originated from the practice of holding back the sleeve of the hanbok so that it wouldn’t touch the table or the food.

Similarly, when receiving a drink, rest the glass in the left palm and hold it with the right hand, perhaps bowing the head slightly to show additional respect. You can also hold the glass using the same hand positions as when pouring. Pouring and receiving with just the right hand by a senior, or between equals, is common in normal situations.

Koreans often say “one shot”, a challenge to everyone in the group to down their glass in one gulp.

A glass should not be refilled unless completely empty and should be promptly refilled once empty; it is considered rude to not fill someone else’s glass when empty.

Some special rules apply when drinking with someone of much higher status, i.e. greater age or rank. When drinking in front of elders (people older than you), the junior is expected to turn away from the elder first. Drinking the shot while directly facing the elder is considered disrespectful. However in recent years, the prevalent practice has been to drink the shot without turning away from the elder (but still using both hands to drink), as most Koreans view the practice as archaic and a detriment to camaraderie, irrespective of the age groups involved.

On occasions, an elder gives an empty soju shot glass (usually his/hers) to an equal or junior. A junior may also offer an empty glass to a senior after they have established a closer relationship.

Giving the glass implies that the person is going to fill it and wants the receiver to drink it. It is not obligatory to finish the drink immediately, but it is impolite to place the glass on the table without at least pretending to drink from it.

After finishing the entire glass, it should be returned and refilled. It is not necessary to return it immediately, but holding it for a long time is considered rude, as it deprives the giver of his glass.

Among friends of equal social status, it is not necessary to use both hands while pouring or receiving a drink, but may be done out of habit or politeness, or if the situation is considered a particularly formal one.

Consumption

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. More than 3 billion bottles were consumed in South Korea in 2004. In 2006, it was estimated that the average adult Korean (older than 20) had consumed 90 bottles of soju during that year.

Despite tradition, soju is not always consumed in unmixed form. Mixing soju and beer is called somaek, a portmanteau of the words soju and maekju (맥주 – beer). Flavored soju is also available. A poktanju(폭탄주) (lit: “bomb drink,”) consists of a shot glass of soju dropped into a pint of draft beer (like a boilermaker or Irish Car Bomb) and is drunk quickly. The reverse equivalent, a shot glass of draft beer dropped into a pint of soju, is called soju poktanju (lit: “soju bomb drink”). This is very similar to the Japanese Sake bomb.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soju

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The names of some beverages are determined by the source of the material fermented. In general, a beverage fermented from a starch-heavy source (grain or potato), in which the starch must first be broken down into sugars (by malting, for example), will be called a beer; if the mash is distilled, the end product is a spirit. Wine is made from fermented grapes.

Brandy and wine are made only from grapes. If an alcoholic beverage is made from another kind of fruit, it is distinguished as fruit brandy or fruit wine. The variety of fruit must be specified, as (for example) “cherry brandy” or “plum wine”.

In the USA and Canada, cider often means unfermented apple juice (see the article on cider), while fermented cider is called hard cider. Unfermented cider is sometimes called sweet cider. In the UK, cider refers to the alcoholic drink; in Australia the term is ambiguous.

Beer is generally made from barley, but can sometimes contain a mix of other grains. Whisky (or whiskey) is sometimes made from a blend of different grains, especially Irish whiskey which may contain several different grains. The style of whisk(e)y (Scotch, rye, Bourbon, corn) generally determines the primary grain used, with additional grains usually added to the blend (most often barley, and sometimes oats). As far as American whiskey is concerned, Bourbon (corn), and rye whiskey, must be at least 51% of respective constituent at fermentation, while corn whiskey (as opposed to Bourbon) must be at least 81%—all by American law similar to the French A.O.C (Appellation d’Origine Controlée).

Two common distilled beverages are vodka and gin. Vodka can be distilled from any source of agricultural origin (grain and potatoes being the most common), but the main characteristic of vodka is that it is so thoroughly distilled as to exhibit less of the flavors derived from its source material. Some distillers and experts, however, may disagree, arguing that potato vodkas display a creamy mouthfeel, while rye vodkas will have heavy nuances of rye. Other vodkas may display citrus notes. Gin is a similar distillate which has been flavored by contact with herbs and other plant products—especially juniper berries, but also including angel root, licorice, cardamom, grains of paradise, Bulgarian rose petals, and many others.

Applejack is an example of a drink originally made by freeze distillation, which is easy to do in cold climates. Although both distillation and freeze distillation reduce the water content, they are not equivalent, because freeze distillation concentrates poisonous higher alcohols rather than reducing them like distillation.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoholic_beverage

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Ethanol (CH₃CH₂OH), the active ingredient in alcoholic drinks, for consumption purposes is always produced by fermentation – the metabolism of carbohydrates – by certain species of yeast in the absence of oxygen. The process of culturing yeast under alcohol-producing conditions is referred to as brewing. The same process produces carbon dioxide in situ, and may be used to carbonate the drink. However, this method leaves yeast residues and on the industrial scale, carbonation is usually done separately.

Drinks with a concentration of more than about 50% ethanol by volume (100 US proof) are flammable liquids and easily ignited. Some exotic drinks gain their distinctive flavors through intentional ignition, such as the Flaming Dr Pepper. Spirits with a higher ethanol content can be ignited with ease by heating slightly, e.g. adding the spirit to a warmed shot glass.

In the liver, the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase oxidizes ethanol into acetaldehyde, which is then further oxidized into harmless acetic acid by acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. Ethanol is metabolized into acetaldehyde and then into acetic acid. Acetic acid is esterified with coenzyme A to produce acetyl CoA. Acetyl CoA carries the acetyl moiety into the citric acid cycle, which produces energy by oxidizing the acetyl moiety into carbon dioxide. Acetyl CoA can also be used for biosynthesis. Acetyl CoA is an intermediate common with the metabolism of sugars and fats, and it is the product of glycolysis, the breakdown of glucose.

When compared to other alcohols, ethanol is only slightly toxic, with a lowest known lethal dose in humans of 1400 mg/kg (about 20 shots for a 100 kg person), and a LD₅₀ of 9000 mg/kg (oral, rat). Nevertheless, accidental overdosing of alcoholic drinks, especially those of concentrated variety, is a risk, especially for women, lightweight persons and children. These people have a smaller quantity of water in their bodies, so that alcohol is diluted less. A blood alcohol concentration of 50 to 100 mg/dL may be considered legal drunkenness (laws vary by jurisdiction). The threshold of effects is at 22 mg/dL.

Alcohol affects the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors, to produce a depressant (neurochemical inhibitory) effect. Alcohol is similar to other sedative-hypnotics such as barbiturates and benzodiazepines both in its effect on the GABA_A receptor although its pharmacological profile is not identical. It has anxiolytic, anticonvulsant, hypnotic and sedative actions similar to many other sedative-hypnotic drugs. Alcohol is also cross-tolerant with benzodiazepines and barbiturates.

Excessive consumption of alcohol leads to a toxication-induced delayed poisoning called hangover (in Latin, crapula refers to intoxication and hangover). Various factors contribute, including the toxication of ethanol itself to acetaldehyde, the direct toxic effects and toxication of impurities called congeners, and dehydration. The hangover starts after the euphoric effects of alcohol itself have subsided, typically in the night and morning after alcoholic drinks were consumed. However, the blood alcohol concentration may still be substantial and above the limits imposed for drivers and operators of other dangerous equipment. The effects of a hangover subside over time. Various treatments to cure hangover have been suggested, many of them pseudoscientific.

In chemistry, alcohol is a general term for any organic compound in which a hydroxyl group (-OH) is bound to a carbon atom, which in turn may be bound to other carbon atoms and further hydrogens. Other alcohols such as propylene glycol and the sugar alcohols may appear in food or beverages regularly, but these alcohols do not make them “alcoholic”. Methanol (one carbon), the propanols (three carbons giving two isomers), and the butanols (four carbons, four isomers) are all commonly found alcohols, and none of these three should ever be consumed in any form. Alcohols are toxicated into the corresponding aldehydes and then into the corresponding carboxylic acids. These metabolic products cause a poisoning and acidosis. In the case of other alcohols than ethanol, the aldehydes and carboxylic acids are poisonous and the acidosis can be lethal. In contrast, fatalities from ethanol are mainly found in extreme doses and related to induction of unconsciousness or chronic addiction (alcoholism).

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoholic_beverage

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