The Hermit Kingdom made waves again on Tuesday after state-run news publisher Pyongyang Times wrote that the Taedonggang Foodstuff Factory had invented a hangover-free liquor after years of research.
The outlet said the new Koryo Liquor is made with ginseng, a plant extract with many medicinal qualities, and glutinous rice instead of sugar. By removing sugar from the concoction, the researchers made the drink hangover-free, supposedly.
The liquor purportedly has an alcoholic content of between 30 to 40 percent. Beer, on the other hand, has an alcoholic content of 3 to 10 percent.
The drink has already been recorded as a "national scientific and technological hit," according to the Pyongyang Times. In a romantic turn of phrase, the state-owned outlet also said the drink was "highly appreciated by experts and lovers" for its "suave" nature.
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Koryo Liquor is made with ginseng and glutinous rice instead of sugar, which is what makes the drink hangover-free, Pyongyang Times wrote.
Pyongyang Times
Many North Koreans have a penchant for liquor, defector Je Son Lee wrote last December in a post for North Korea News, a site dedicated to news from the secluded country. Beer was even considered "a soft drink" in her town, she added.
The country reportedly brews two types of liquor: "No. 1," which is made exclusively for Kim Jong Un, and "No. 2," for everyone else in the country, according to Lee. This claim has not been confirmed, however, and it is typically difficult to verify any information out of the Hermit Kingdom. The Pyongyang Times report also did not mention whether the Koryo Liquor was "No. 1" or "No. 2."
The invention of hangover-free alcohol adds to a long string of dubious scientific claims -- ranging from the optimistic to downright threatening -- that have come out of the Hermit Kingdom. Last June, North Korea said it had developed a ginseng-based drug that could prevent and cure MERS, Ebola, SARS and AIDS.
Two North Korean soldiers smoke cigarettes as a pedestrian walks past on a street corner in Pyongyang, North Korea. (credit:AP )
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A statue of Kim Il Sung sits in the entrance to the Grand People's Study House in Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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Students swim and play on a water slide at a pool facility at Kim Il Sung University in Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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People enjoy a ride at an amusement park in Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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Commuters walk through a subway station in Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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A statue known as the Monument to the Three Charters for National Reunification, which symbolizes the hope for eventual reunification of the two Koreas, arches over a highway at the edge of Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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A United States flag and weapons sit inside a glass display case at the war museum in Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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Stuffed animals are on display at Changgwang Elementary School where they are used for biology classes in Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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Concert-goers sit inside an auditorium as they wait for a classical music performance to begin in Pyongyang (credit:AP )
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Two female North Korean soldiers hold hands as they tour the birthplace of Kim Il Sung at Mangyongdae, North Korea. (credit:AP )
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A shadow of the 170-meter (560-foot) Juche Tower is cast over the Taedong River in Pyongyang, North Korea. (credit:AP )
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People stroll along the Taedong River in Pyongyang, North Korea. (credit:AP )
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Families have their photographs taken in front of the Kumsusan Memorial Palace in Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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A bowl of traditional North Korean cold noodles, known as Naengmyeon, sits on a restaurant table in Pyongyang. (credit:AP )
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North Korean workers rebuild the roof of a structure at the Pohyon Temple at the foot of Mount Myohyang. (credit:AP )
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Hikers climb a trail along Mount Myohyang. (credit:AP )
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