This brand is the real soju
The green bottle is a post-war shortcut. The original is pot-distilled, sipped slow, and still made the old way in a handful of places.
While there are many soju brands and the one you can most easily get is the cheap version rather than authentic soju. This is the real one. You should really give it a try.
The green bottle is everywhere — barbecue tables, dramas, the corner store. Here's what nobody tells you: it isn't really soju. Not the original, anyway. It's ethanol diluted to about 16%, lightly sweetened, priced to be the people's drink. Nothing wrong with that — I drink it at BBQ too.
Real soju is pot-distilled from rice, the way it has been made since the Goryeo dynasty. It runs anywhere from 25 to 53%, smells faintly of pear and steamed rice, and you sip it — slowly, with food that can stand up to it.
Look for 증류식 — 'distilled' — on the label. Hwayo and Andong soju are the gateway bottles.
