A Kyrgyz Drink Shocking Travelers’ Taste Buds (with video)

By on July 9, 2012 in Asia, Food & Drink, Kyrgyzstan

It was like reliving the past.

When I watched Pat try one of those “street drinks” that are ever so popular in Kyrgyzstan, the very same one I had tried back in 2008, I couldn’t help but laugh at his misfortune.

“It’s an acquired taste, dear.”

shoro

The Shoro drink stands you can find on every corner of Bishkek in the summer.

Still, Pat was intent on giving Maksim Shoro a try. After buying our plane tickets to Osh, we walked across the street to the little stands topped with round red and blue barrels wearing the picture of a pilot (?) with a huge mustache.

“Do you want one, or two?” the quiet young girl asked us.

I laughed and quickly replied that we would only be needing one of the smallest glasses. That would be enough.

Shoro, for those interested, is a fermented style drink based on wheat. However, after reading this article and discovering a recipe for the drink, I can now understand why it might not be so great: it has animal fat in it.

This is probably the reason why Pat and I had very similar reactions to the drink. Just take a look at these videos!

My First Try Back in 2008

Pat’s First Try in 2012

Please note: Pat did not watch my video before tasting. Also, it does include the F-word.

So, would you give Shoro a try when visiting Kyrgyzstan?

About Brooke

Brooke is a passionate traveler who has a love for any country that ends in -stan, languages she'll never be able to speak, and cannoli. She is the creator of the female travel focused FTU Newsletter and Her Packing List website. Follow on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+.
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7 Responses to A Kyrgyz Drink Shocking Travelers’ Taste Buds (with video)

  1. Ryan at Travel and Graphs July 10, 2012 at 12:16 pm #

    haha, those videos were hilarious. Being the least adventurous eater on the planet, I think this is one drink I will most likely skip out on!

    Reply
    • Brooke July 12, 2012 at 8:55 am #

      Ha, well it’s not as bad as kumis :)

      Reply
  2. Abby July 12, 2012 at 10:39 am #

    Love how one taste wasn’t enough — you had to finish the whole thing!

    Reply
    • Brooke July 13, 2012 at 2:24 am #

      Haha, it was a requirement – so that no one could say we didn’t give it a good try! ;) Thanks for sharing the post!

      Reply
  3. cailin July 15, 2012 at 6:39 pm #

    hahaha OMG why did you finish all of it?! If it was gross after one taste I would of stopped! haha

    Reply
  4. aidana November 25, 2012 at 7:28 pm #

    wow…me and my family buy like bottles of it…but i was born there so its not a surprise.

    Reply
    • Brooke November 25, 2012 at 11:48 pm #

      It’s a taste that people from other parts of world, like myself, cannot enjoy ;)

      Reply

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