These three soju CEOs are reimagining what the distilled rice beverage can be.
Grace Choi always do it she want to start a blade that celebrated her heritage as Korean American — she just thought it ’d be a K - beauty line or something to do with skincare . But as an issue deviser , she observe call back about the types of activities she have intercourse the most . “ I set off thinking about what I really enjoy doing , which is spending time with friends and family . And then what do I like doing when I ’m with them ? ” she mull . “ Drinking soju . ”
The idea come to Chio two geezerhood ago , after experience thesuccesses of White Clawand otherlow - ABV sack drinks . But she wanted to create one herself that espouse her Korean - American upbringing complete with flavors and fixings that matte familiar to her . So she began stale calling cannery , quick to take her canned soju cocktail line of work , Jumo , from concept to realness .
But make believe a line of canned alcoholic drink is not soft . Carol Pak , the laminitis ofSoolwhich has a line of canned soju cocktail called Soku and canned makgeolli ( unfiltered Elmer Reizenstein beer ) called Makku — acknowledge this nearly . Prior to get going Sool , she spent a twelvemonth crop at ZX Ventures , the innovation arm ofAnheuser - Busch InBev .
Photo courtesy of Jumo
“ While working in that position , I had access to a passel of data , both topically and globally , and make out that the next five to ten years would be filled with a huge slip in the beverage environment , ” Pak explains . On a trip to Korea visit family friends , she perused the grocery entrepot beverage aisle and it occurred to her that she , too , could be part of this shift . “ My Friend knew that I was work in the industry and remark that I should start out looking into makgeolli because there was this resurgence of the younger generation stress to revive this ancient , outdated deglutition . ”
So Pak started with Makku , but soju was n’t far from her mind . “ Everything was trending towards sessionable and send away , so it was a no - brainer to wed that RTD demand while representing soju and familiarizing hoi polloi with it in a more approachable way , ” Pak says . Soku was created with three flavors : strawberry , tangerine tree , and ananas .
“ I left [ ZX Ventures ] because this is much more tie to my backdrop , my rage , and my cultivation , ” Pak excuse . “ I ’d much rather be sour on a Korean alcohol and introduce it to the U.S. market . ”
Photo courtesy of Sool
Anyone mistily conversant with soju is likely used to see the clear distilled drinkable add up in an iconic immature feeding bottle . Typically made from rice or other stiff crops , soju is commonly found atKorean barbecuefeasts and Koreatownkaraoke bars , where it ’s taken as crack or sip groovy .
But Carolyn Kim , a attorney and mother of two , felt that accepting that soju could only come from a mass - produced green nursing bottle was limiting to what the spirit could really be . Instead , she startedYobo , an American - made soju brand bring about using grapes from the Finger Lakes Region of New York — notrice .
“ If you mean soju finish with the green bottle , that ’d be like thinking tequila terminate with plastic handles , ” a voice for Yobo excuse . “ But there ’s so much fullness beyond that and Carolyn really desire to construct something that did n’t subsist in the market . ”
Photo courtesy of Hunni
In creating a distilled soju mark , the next natural progression in this drink industriousness fixated on RTD pick was to make a dismiss cocktail edition . Hunniwas found as an lengthiness of Yobo , aneffervescent sparkling sojuoption that clocks in at 100 calories per can with 4 % ABV .
For all three founders , flavor plays a monumental function in telling the story of their Korean - American fostering . “ We knew we were going to make a drinking , it had to be scrumptious , and it had to pay homage to being Korean , ” Choi says . “ I need to include at least one Korean ingredient in my iteration . ”
Jumo currently come in three tang : cucumber , Asiatic pear , perilla leaf ; peach , lychee , rise up ; and mango , citrus mint , and yuja ( yuja is the Korean word for yuzu ) . Even the cans , which have colorful stripes , are meant to replicate the designs of hanbok , or traditional Korean garment . “ I loved that we were able to call it yuja on the can because that just goes back to our commission , ” Choi explains . “ We really want to train masses about Korean culture and have them enjoy it as much as we do , even if it ’s starting with Korean names for ingredients . ”
Flavored soju remind Kim of hazy dark and morn spend in Koreatown , but it was important to run into a residual , as flavored sojus are often cloyingly mellifluous . So the brand name ’s savor bring dose , spice , and heat to a baseline recipe that Kim feels they ’ve perfect . Hunni ’s four tone admit yuzu and elderflower , lulu and chili pepper , grape and ginger , and Korean pear , perilla leaf , and lime .
The definition of soju in America was once a shallow understanding of green bottle and sippable rice liquor , but thanks to these founder , Korea ’s national spiritcan be so much more . “ Beverages are such a Brobdingnagian part of Korean culture , so I want to be a involvement to the great population , ” Pak enunciate . “ I grew up in Queens , was president of my Korean students ’ association in high schooltime and college , and did transformation mould for a nonprofit . This is just a natural progression in my calling — retain to divvy up Korean culture . ”
Choi feels likewise , reflecting on the existence she want her two - yr - quondam to develop up in — a globe in which he has an savvy of what it think to beKorean - Americanand a sense of pride in it . “ I feel lucky that we can do this through Jumo , ” Choi enunciate . “ We ’re go to do everything we can to represent Korea . ”
