Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Hindsight]

rumdiary

[calicoe]

[Hindsight]

I was just kidding about that value Tesco Scotch. I don't think they have it here in Korea, though I could be mistaken.

Actually, I got some Tesco Scotch for under 13000w for 700ml. I tried a swig of it after I left the store, and thought it was pretty vile. But I may have been premature in my judgment. Perhaps it just needs to breathe a little. And lots and lots of ice. This stuff is strong. Not for drinking neat. But with ice it actually has a pretty bearable flavour, especially in a Johnnie Walker Black tumbler. (I decanted my Tesco into a Ballantine's 12 year bottle.) I like my Scotch strong, and actually was a bit disappointed with some of the 12 year stuff here, which seemed a bit wimpy, a little too toned down for the foreign market?

Sometimes it's hard to judge, but I don't think this Tesco is cut with grain alcohol, though it does say grain whiskey. Correct me if I'm wrong on that. Tesco's "rum" appears to be 95 percent grain alcohol, so I'm a bit skeptical. This stuff tastes more like Bourbon than Scotch, frankly, with some copper still taste.

Oh, this is the "special reserve oak aged" Tesco Scotch, "distilled, blended and bottled in Scotland. Given that it's 80 proof, and soju that's relatively palatable is 40 proof, that's a pretty good deal. And you know what's in it, as compared to soju, the mystery alcohol. (Hmmm, it has an ingredients list: demineralized water, grain whiskey, malt whiskey, colour (plain caramel).) Ordinarily, I'm quite happy with Johnnie Walker Red Label, but this Scotch is half the price, and does the job. So you don't have to resort to soju. Unless you really enjoy it.

Edit: This is not good Scotch. It is not sipping Scotch. But when you put it in a tumbler with ice it actually smells like Scotch. The trick, I have found through my experimenting, is to just drink it down. Do not sip, do not let it linger on the tongue. Just drink and don't think. And it will taste OK. Putting hot mustard or horseradish on some hors d'ouvres helps, too. (What wine goes with kimchi?)

[guava]

Heres two that I like ~

http://www.physics.uq.edu.au/people/nieminen/chiew.html

Moon Bae Sool:
A very traditional Korean liquor. Distilled from millet and sorghum, the packaging claims that this delciacy is hangover-proof (Anybody care to test this claim?). In a square china bottle, this is strongly flavoured, with a very distinctive taste and aroma showing its milletish origins clearly. I'd guess that this is distilled to a low proof and bottled undiluted, or almost undiluted. Smooth and well-made, 40% alcohol, and beautifully packaged.

Chon Ju Lee Gang Ju:
A very traditional Korean liquor, supposedly quite good for one's health, to retain your energy level and keep your stomach strong. It has a mild but quite distinctive flavour, suggestive of rice and millet, and an irreproachable smoothness elevates it above its modern mass-market counterparts (and for the price, one would hope so). Once one is accustomed to the taste, this goes down very easily. A bit too mild and innocuous for its own good. 25% alcohol.

And heres one that I'd like to drink but haven't ~

Paekrosul:
A "well-known liquor," this is a Kanggye specialty from the D.P.R.K. (aka North Korea). Shoddy packaging, with a bottle full of defects (at least no holes beyond the necessary one) and a cap that guarantees it will leak in your luggage, hides a truly impressive liquor. A very attractive aroma, with a flavour to match, and a very nice lingering aftertaste. This is stunningly good. As an added bonus, if you drink it, you get to live for a hundred years (thus the name, which means "hundred-years liquor"). 40% alcohol.

[Hindsight]

Hey, I've figured it out. This Tesco Scotch tastes more like tequila than Scotch, when you drink it straight. Well, maybe a cross between bourbon and tequila. I wonder if you could make a sunrise with it?

But what I haven't figured out is why Tesco can import 700ml glass bottles in cardboard boxes of Scotch bottled in Scotland for 12,000 won, but it costs 3000 won for a 14 ounce can of American vegetables that would have cost 50 cents in North America?

I thought taxes were the reason for the high cost of liquor in Korea, but this Tesco Scotch seems to disprove that. This is cheaper than in the States. Do they simply jack up the prices on stuff that foreigners buy?

Edit: Hmmmm. No, I think maybe the Tesco Scotch tastes more like bad rum. Or is it the bad rum here tastes like bad Scotch?

[Steelrails]

I'm trying to choke down magkoli right now. This is the first time I've had it since I took one sip and pronounced it fould my second week here. I can drink just about anything as long as it isn't disgustingly sweet, but this is a challenge here.

Something about it just tastes like old socks. It IS giving me a weird buzz which I may or may not enjoy.

Some of the flower wines, served warm, are pretty nice.

I miss Five O, Ten High, Dirty Bird, and Camo.

If I ain't going Top Shelf, then it best be cheap and get your buzz on.

Actually this seems like itd kinda be good to drink while driving/discharging firearms/at a BBQ

[reactionary]

hell, I miss cheap JAPANESE whiskey! give me a bottle of Torys or the other low end Suntorys and Kirins. 1200 yen for a 700 ml bottle of kakubin *sigh*. I pay more than double that for low end scotch here.

"But Japan is so expensive!"

[caniff]

[Steelrails]

[guava]

Find a good restaurant that serves Hae Mul Pah Jun and they will have Dong Dong Ju.

If they don't have Dong Dong Ju its not a good restaurant.

[young_clinton]

[Hindsight]

young_clinton:

[aussieb]

All spirits & liquers can be made by adding flavourings to distilled ethanol.
Ethanol is distilled from a fermented mash of mainly sugars & yeast.
I have heard of someone who runs a still and produces pretty good rum, scotch,sambucca,kahula,baileys etc for himself & his friends .. he can make anything you want as long as he can get the appropriate flavourings. The cost price is right as well.

[aussieb]

I tried Jinro Red Soju recently .. not bad .. a more intense flavour than Original and slightly higher alcohol content.

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