"south korea" news and stories

Mommy Says "Drink Your Coke"

by Naomi Shulman, Posted Jul 7th 2010 @ 2:00PM

First there were mommies. Then came blogs. Put the two together, and a marketing force is born. "Now said to number in the millions, these online women have cobbled together content networks that rival some mainstream media companies," asserts Advertising Age. "And they're clearly a force that retailers underestimate at their own peril."

Coca-Cola, a company with a long history of savvy marketing (New Coke notwithstanding), doesn't underestimate that force one bit -- in fact, it hopes to profit from it. Kenth Kaerhoeg, group communications director for the company's Pacific branch in Hong Kong, told AdAge that they're in the process of identifying "digital influencers" in South Korea -- i.e., popular mommy bloggers -- to stir up some good, old-fashioned word of mouth. Hooking up with the right young moms can have an enormous marketing effect, as Kaerhoeg explains; the company takes them very seriously, calling them "vitally important stakeholders."

Filed under: Drinks

North Korean Soju to enter US market

COMMENTS 3

by Jonathan M. Forester, Posted Jul 24th 2007 @ 3:02PM

Soju, the Korean distilled spirit, has long been the most consumed spirit in the world, especially throughout Asia. Low to mid-level brands from South Korea have been available in the US for years and I have enjoyed quite a few of them when out dining with friends at some of my favorite Korean restaurants in Queens and Manhattan, NY.

Soju is made in the most part from fermented rice, but also with other fermentable products like wheat, barley or sweet potatoes; then distilled an adjusted to 20-45% abv. / 40-90 proof. The North Korean brand would initially go on sale in the Eastern US states and should be available now.

Now North Korea is going to enter the playing field with one of their soju going to be sold in the US, Pyongyang Soju. This is quite rare for products from North Korea to be sanctioned for import to the United States. Many folks feel that products from North Korea shouldn't be allowed into the US or should be boycotted.

Personally, I will try one bottle of Pyongyang Soju if I run across it so I can review it, but after that I won't go out of my way. I much prefer the multitude of premium, Japanese distilled products called shochu to Korean soju. They are just so much better in taste and quality than soju. So much so, that they are now the number one alcoholic beverage consumed in Japan.

Source

Filed under: Did you know?, Liquor Cabinet, Drink Recipes, New Products, Drinks

Chocolate and Brad Pitt - combined!

COMMENTS 1

by Nicole Weston, Posted Mar 11th 2006 @ 12:51PM

Somehow, we missed the 176-pound solid chocolate Brad Pitt that was put on display in a department store in South Korea over Valentine's Day. According to Best Week Ever, the near life-size model was a response to the North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il's commission of a 200-pound model of Leslie Nielsen made out of olives. The likeness of Brad does not look exactly like him, but there is a resemblance and no doubt the effort was greatly appreciated by fans of the actor. Brad Pitt sounds a lot more appetizing, generally speaking, but it seems safe to say that chocolate will win over more people than a 200-pound pile of olives.

No word on what was done with the chocolate when the display was taken down. It didn't turn up on eBay, so it is safe to assume that it was either eaten or melted down and recast.

Source

Filed under: Food Oddities, On the Blogs, Ingredients

Bad news beer

COMMENTS 0

by Nick Vagnoni, Posted Dec 26th 2005 @ 12:07PM

Let me start by saying that I'm in no way out to create any kind of link between alcohol and violence here. It just so happened that I read three different articles about beer and violence yesterday.

It started with this story from Springfield, Illinois, about a woman who fatally stabbed her boyfriend with a steak knife in a fight over a can of Natural Light. (This ad, from 1979, seemed appropriate.)

Next, a Bakersfield, California, man was recently sentenced to 50 years to life for suffocating his girlfriend after an argument over a bottle of beer "got out of hand."

Finally, an American soldier in South Korea may receive a 30-month sentence for attacking a Korean man with a beer bottle last summer.

Filed under: Newspapers, Drink Recipes