Traditional booze can be sold online in Korea, even if it's très cool

Christmas edition of Won Soju Spirit which is sold through KakaoTalk [WON SPIRITS]

Peddling booze online is forbidden in Korea, unless the tipple is considered traditional.

This loophole has been used by Won Spirits, with great success and to the consternation of rivals.

The company, started by American rapper Jay Park, began selling Won Soju Spirit via KakaoTalk on Nov. 20. A total of 210,000 bottles of the drink have been sold this way.

To be categorized under Liquor Tax Act as a traditional alcoholic beverage, local ingredients must be used. Taxes on drinks that qualify are reduced 50 percent, and the product can be sold online.

Won Soju Spirit is made with rice from Wonju, Gangwon, and with no additives, hence it is traditional.

A number of drinks that are popular and have a traditional image do not make the grade. This includes Kooksoondang and Jangsoo makgeolli, fermented rice drinks, Bekseju, a Korean wine, and Hwayo, a distilled soju made from organic rice.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said last July that it “plans to revise the Act on Promotion of Korean Traditional Liquor Industries before the end of this year in a direction which is plausible for public understanding.”

The gist of the revision is that the ministry aims to include makgeolli brands as traditional liquors and put alcoholic beverages made with local ingredients in a separate category.

The rub is the use of imported ingredients.

Last October, in a meeting with Agriculture Ministry, lawmakers expressed concern that domestic rice consumption could suffer if large makgeolli brands are included on the tradition list.

“Realistically, large makgeolli brands use imported rice due to the price gap between imported and domestically produced rice,” Lee Dae-hyung, a researcher at Gyeonggi Agricultural Research & Extension Services, told the JoongAng Ilbo.

“While it is justifiable in the aspect that we are upholding our indigenous value by classifying makgeolli as traditional liquor, it won’t be proper for products which use imported ingredients to be evaluated as such,” Professor Jeong Heon-bae of JoongAng University said.

Another point of contention is whether alcohol of any sort should be sold online. Concerns about underage drinking have been expressed.

“We need to carefully approach the matter,” said Jeong Ji-yeon, the head of Consumers Union of Korea.

The welfare of alcohol beverage distributors and retailers has also been mentioned.

Craft beer makers are pushing to sell their drinks online, as beer distribution channels are dominated by a few companies in Korea. They can source malt domestically, from Gunsan, North Jeolla.

BY CHOI SUN-EUL [lee.jaelim@joongang.co.kr]