Koreans rank beer as their no. 1 tipple of choice, according to the National Tax Service. Beer consumption went up 45-fold over the past four decades.

Koreans drank more than 43,000 kiloliters of beer in 1966 and kept on chugging, with consumption reaching a whopping 1.9 million kl in 2007. Soju came second with consumption increasing nine times over the same period, while traditional drinks like rice wine fell in popularity.

When it comes to alcohol tax, beer also ranked first, accounting for over 43 percent of the total tax on alcohol last year.