Wednesday Whistle Wetter: #4

Guess we'll have to call this one the "Thursday Whistle Wetter," as I'm a little late for Wednesday. Anyhow, this weeks' drink is equally as intriguing, but then again when have I been opposed to trying new alcohol.

After discovering my love for travel, coupled with the unearthing of my love to drink, my intrigue has extended way beyond food and into the world of alcoholic drinks. Beer, wine, and liquor in many forms of shots, pints, glasses, shooters, and cocktails of all flavors and styles have increased the excitement, sociability, and my knowledge of the "food and drink" world. Having lived in Paris and traveling through most of Western Europe in 2010, I found myself just as excited to try new kinds of drinks as I was to try new kinds of foods. Absinthe, pastis, and arrack wine were just a few that I was able to add to my list of "tried" drinks and brag sheet, most of which are especially hard to find in their most traditional forms in the States.

As a result, you'll be sure to catch my eye if you tout a sign in your restaurant window that advertises the service of any kind of overseas "traditional drink." Really. Try me.

This weeks' whistle wetter puts "soju," center stage. I came across the drink "soju" in looking for a place to eat with a friend who recently visited from out of town. He wanted Korean food, so I put my mind in culinary Sherlock Holmes mode and stumbled across a Korean restaurant/bar called "Tonight Soju Bar."My first reaction: "wtf is soju."

Turns out it's a Korean starch liquor comparable to a hybrid of Japanese sake and vodka, just sweeter. It also turns out to be one of the most popularly consumed liquors in the world; and that my friends is how you make a self proclaimed "foodie" feel like shit. Soju is served in shots, consumed clean (without mixing or chasing). After a bottle split between the two of us, coupled with plates and plates of Korean food, I was able to cross of yet another drink to the list of "tried" drinks. I'm beginning to love these Wednesday posts.

They say that the United States is a melting pot of cultures, where people of all different races, cultures, and beliefs come to prosper. To an extent, that is true, however I realize how lucky I am to live in San Francisco where that statement could not be more accurate. As a result, my eye opening experiences, great food/drink tours, and credit card bill continues to thrive without a foreseeable end.

Cheers!