Metro Recommends: 10 Delicious Ways To Drink Soju
There's a soju drink for everyone. Find yours!
Soju is swiftly becoming the most popular liquor in town, if it isn't already. It's a clear spirit with a 20 to 24 ABV, and a sharply neutral taste that reminds one of vodka. It can be enjoyed in many different ways: drunk chilled and neat, for example, or on the rocks, or even mixed into a cocktail.
Soju owes its popularity to K-drama fever. Every single K-drama has a scene with soju, usually a pivotal scene set for confessions of love, dramatic meetings, or to convey intense emotions, like heartbreak. Is it any wonder, then, that we've become so emotionally invested in soju?
We admit, we love our soju. And because it is such a clean, neutral drink, we've discovered a lot of ways to enjoy it. We've drank it straight from the bottle, sampled the different flavors, mixed our soju in beer, soda, and Yakult. If you're wondering the favorite ways we at Metro.Style enjoy our soju, then please check out the gallery below. Who knows? You might find something you'll want to try.
Soju Is Good For The Soul
Soju Is Good For The Soul
The Hongbae
"My favorite soju cocktail is The Hongbae (I just invented that name). I got the recipe from a photographer. It’s a refreshing and light citrusy cocktail, perfect for easy afternoons at the beach. What you’ll need; 1 360-mL bottle Jinro Original Soju, 1 cup Tropicana Coconut Water (chilled), 1 cup Del Monte Pineapple Orange Juice (chilled), 1 bottle Delight, ice, a pitcher, and slices of orange (optional). Pour the soju and coconut water into the pitcher. Mix in pineapple orange juice. Add ice. Top with the orange slices, if you’re feeling a little extra. As for the soju, I get it from the nearby 7-Eleven. I remember drinking this when my ex and I were in Seoul one Halloween. We didn’t want to spend much on alcohol so we decided to get soju from the store and drink in our costumes at our Airbnb before we went out." - Raff Colmenar, Art Director
Photo Credit: Raff Colmenar
Soju with Citron-Honey or Grapefruit Honey Teas
"I usually flavor my soju with citron-honey or grapefruit honey "teas" by Cafe Bene. I get these from S&R. No Brand has a variety of these at Rustan's. Korean stores also carry other brands as well. They don't only flavor soju. You can also do a non-alcoholic mix with sparkling water or drink it hot. My favorite soju story is from the K-drama "Itaewon Class". There's a scene where Park Seo-ri has a drink with his dad, and his dad tells him that if the soju tastes good, 'it was a sweet day.' That was particularly endearing!” - Anna Rosete, Living Section Editor
Photo Credit: @mnzkoreanfoodmart
Grapefruit Soju or Soju Soda
"Grapefruit-flavored soju is smooth and sweet, but doesn’t have a medicine-y taste unlike other flavors! I like mixing plain soju with soda, particularly Royal. I don’t like the taste of alcohol so I try to mask it whenever I can, but I like this combination because even if I add a lot of soju, I can barely taste the alcohol and it still gets me to where I wanna go. Haha! There’s a 7-Eleven right in my building, so whenever I feel like drinking soju, I just take the elevator down. I watched all ten episodes of "Emily in Paris" in one night, over soju and Royal. Suffice to say, I needed it." - Renee Nuevo, Writer
Photo Credit: @jinroph
Peach Soju with Yakult
"Mix a little (or a lot of) peach-flavored soju with Yakult. You can check out www.builtamart.com. This is one of the places you can order from, but its not a fully Korean shop. I most recently had this to drink while catching up with my barkada over Zoom for an e-numan!" - Aisha, Anwar, Social Media Manager
Photo Credit: @gooddaysojuph
Soju on the Rocks, with Beer Chaser, or a Soju-Yakult-Melona Mix
"I love soju when it's super chilled, and enjoyed straight up in a shot! Then chase with some super cold beer, too. If I’m feeling “more chill” I’ll drink a soju Yakult Melona mix, a drink I recently discovered. I’ll this enjoy after dinner if I’m looking for something a bit sweet, which happens, albeit rarely. I order soju online via delivery apps like PICK.A.ROO or MetroMart. I definitely love the fact I’ve grown to have an appreciation for soju ever since lockdown/quarantine began in March. Staying home and watching all the K-dramas on the weekends had me reaching for soju on the rocks all the time!" - Justin Convento, Culture Section Editor
Green Grape Soju with Mango Pulp
"I first learned how to drink soju from my former editor (and fellow KDrama fan) Marbee Shing-Go. This was probably ten years ago. Before then I hated the taste of soju by itself, and even when I went to Korea for a conference, I thought the drink was overrated. Marbee shared how soju is best experienced with another flavor (at that time there weren't too many variants—just regular soju with differences in alcohol content), and perhaps, another texture, like pulpy mango. It was an experience shared over casual drinks and good conversation, the specifics of which I've ceased to remember. But I will always associate soju with this time in my life, as a new editor discovering new things, with a mentor sharing lessons over drinks and casual fare. Talk on the joys and vicissitudes of life over glasses of soju never felt more soulful." - Geolette Esguerra, Editor-in-Chief
Photo Credit: @jinroph
Classic, Peach, or Blueberry Soju with Yakult
"We usually have soju delivered from Assi Fresh Plaza. I usually drink soju on weekend evenings while watching K-drama, to reward myself from a very tiring workweek. Every time I do that, I feel relaxed, but sometimes the mornings after leaves me with a headache, haha. I also enjoy drinking this with grilled samgyupsal or galbisal." - Grace Libero, People Section Editor
Plum Soju
"I usually buy soju in Korean groceries. Thankfully there are a couple near where I live. I went to Thailand last year and one night, ended up in a row of bars frequented by university kids. With the language barrier and the noise, my server misunderstood my order of one bottle of plum soju, and served me an entire tower of the stuff enough for five to six people! I was the only one in my group who liked plum soju. It was a good night." - Sara de los Reyes, Writer
Photo Credit: @jinroid
Favorite Flavor: Strawberry Soju
"There's a Korean grocery in our neighborhood called Da Won Sarang, I get my soju stock there, along with homemade Japchae, mandu, and fish cake, made by the ahjumma who owns the place. I had soju a couple of years ago, when I wasn't into the entire K-wave yet. I just had a few shots with friends after work, thinking it was just a harmless drink, ending up going home really drunk. It's only this year that I reignited my relationship with soju! My next memorable soju story will happen when I finally go to Seoul!" - Kate Paras, Beauty and Health & Wellness Editor
Photo Credit: @rjboozeshop
Favorite Flavor: Peach Soju
"It’s my husband who buys soju online. He says it’s his gift to keep me sane (AKA him out of trouble. It’s my happy drink. My daughter loves playing with it, then helping me make it after too. Because when you shake it and invert it, it creates a mini tornado in the bottle." - Kat Cruz, Creative Director
Photo Credit: @gooddaysojuph
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