One thing that I realized since I moved to Asia is that there’s a very distinct drinking culture here, especially when it comes to business.
For example in Japan and Korea, a lot of important contracts are signed after drinking together and there’s a whole new set of drinking rules to pay attention to.
I noticed in Seoul there are lots of etiquette rules on how to drink Soju: the way it’s poured and shared among friends, along with the traditional customs associated with drinking - it definitely adds a special (and sometimes stressful!) charm to the experience.
The best guide I ever saw on how to drink soju correctly was this guide Jay Park made with Buzzfeed It also talks about the bottle top game which is always super fun
I used his tips last night when drinking soju at a Korean BBQ with my homestay in Seoul.
I made sure I served anyone older than me and used both hands. As I am on friendly terms with them though, they quickly told me to drop the formalities.
They were however impressed I knew to turn my back and drink being younger than them.
Great watch and big thanks for making me look somewhat normal!!
Oh that’s awesome!! And glad it took away the stress of not knowing what to do in a new cultural situation I’m sure the host family really appreciated you taking the time to understand the soju drinking rules
Instead of throwing away the bottle cap afterwards, you can twist the loose end until it’s close to snapping off (see picture below!). Then pass it around and everybody has to flick it once, until it flies off. If you’re the person who snaps the bottlecap, you have to finish your drink
