The U.S.-based news service Bloomberg on March 6 covered the surging popularity of Korea's most popular alcoholic beverage soju in the article headlined "The world’s 50 best bars are finding success with soju." Korea.net DB

By Yoon Seungjin

Global demand for the nation's most popular alcoholic beverage soju is surging, Bloomberg said on March 6.

In the article headlined "The world's 50 best bars are finding success with soju," the U.S.-based business news service featured the growing popularity of the drink.

The influence of Korean culture and food was cited as the reason for rising global interest in Korean products like soju. The worldwide boom in K-pop and K-dramas also attracted consumers from around the world who want to explore all aspects of Korean life.

The article explained the difference between distilled and diluted soju, citing the rise of the latter due to reduced rice production and distribution immediately after the Korean War.

"The $3 billion soju market globally is not real soju," Hana Makgeolli's co-founder Alice Jun told Bloomberg. "Soju as a spirit, as a craft, has the depth to compete against Japanese craft spirits, whiskey, tequila or so many different types of spirit categories from all around the world."

"The biggest growth opportunity for craft soju lies in major cities where cocktail culture is flourishing," Bloomberg said, referring to the drinks from brands like Tokki Soju, Hana Soju and Won Soju used as cocktail ingredients.

“We want it to get to a point where you don't even think of it as Korean anymore," Tokki's founder Brandon Hill said. "When you think of vodka, you don’t think 'Eastern European' anymore. That's just something that's at a bar."

scf2979@korea.kr