Image via Wikimedia (L) and NSW Liquor & Gaming Authority (R)
It’s been said that soju is the most popular alcohol in the world. Jinro, the leading manufacturer of the clear white Korean spirit—which is often compared to vodka, but in most cases is closer to sake—sold about 702 million litres of the stuff last year. Couple that with the fact that South Koreans are world leaders in heavy spirits consumption, and it should come as little surprise that the liquor is often associated with people passing out in public.
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Still though, when a group of five diners are allegedly served 86 soju shots in a single sitting at a restaurant in Sydney, it’s enough for authorities to take notice. Especially when a handful of those people end up sprawled out unconscious in the street.The NSW Liquor and Gaming Authority announced yesterday that it gave the licensee of the Haru Fusion Soju Lounge in Sydney's Castlereagh Street a “first strike" because of an incident that occurred in October last year. The punishment was meted out as as part of the NSW Government's three strikes disciplinary scheme.CCTV footage shows the diners falling asleep at their table, falling to the floor, and being carried out by other patrons at the venue following a six-hour birthday celebration that saw them imbibing an average of about 17 shots each. While soju’s alcohol content typically weighs in at about 20 percent—somewhere between wine and hard liquor—in some cases it can be as potent as 50 percent.
One female member of the group was so drunk that police found her unconscious outside the venue, lying next to a pool of vomit. Another man was lying unconscious on the road, and was carried to the footpath by road workers."It's a pretty serious amount of alcohol. The proof is in the pudding," said Philip Crawford, chairman of the NSW Liquor and Gaming Authority, according to ABC. "This is a life-threatening incident which we just cannot tolerate. If they were unconscious from drinking too much alcohol, that's a serious breach of the responsible service of alcohol regulations."Follow Gavin on Twitter or Instagram