[Chat] New No Da Ji restaurant

[Emil Volcheck]

At the New No Da Ji restaurant this weekend, my placemat had an
advertisement that was mostly written in Japanese.  I couldn't
figure out what it was for, except that it was something to drink.
There was a picture of a green bottle with a mountain in brushstrokes,
and drawings of happy people.  It wasn't clear to me whether the
beverage was alcoholic or not.

Here's what was in English:

---
Fresh Combination of Soju and Green Tea

Green tea leaves are picked from Halla mountain of Cheju and Bosang
of Jeonnam Province.  The most famous two places for Green tea.
Green tea is effective in dissolving alcohol poisoning.  It has a
clean taste and refreshes the body and mind.
---

Out of curiosity, I decided to order some.  Since my waitress spoke
no English it seemed, I had to point to the advertisement, because
I didn't know what to call it.  I thought it might be some kind of
Sake.  The waitress gave me a whole bottle, not simply a glass,
so I could read the composition.  (Maybe she gave me the bottle
and not a glass because I pointed to the ad, and the ad pictured
a whole bottle.)  I was curious about a potentially alcoholic
beverage that promised to rid you of alcohol poisoning while
you were drinking it.

It turns out that it is a sweet potato liqueur, flavored with green
tea extract, called "Saan Soju".  I've never had anything quite like
it.  It tastes like something between Sake and Vodka, about 40 proof.

--Emil