Last weekend I was introduced to the sake bomb.
For those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, a sake bomb is a shot of sake only slightly balanced on top of two chopsticks sitting on glass half filled with beer.
Once all the shots are ready, the group of people who you are drinking with yell “Sake, Sake, Sake, Bomb!” while banging on the table, causing the shot to fall off the chopsticks and into the glass. You then immediately drink the shot, and then that’s all you can remember.
Just kidding about the last part, but it is definitely quite an experience.
Alternatively, counting to three in Japanese is also common. “Ichi, Ni, San, SAKE BOMB!”
Now, I’ve read a lot of stuff on the ‘net saying that this is a vulgar tradition and that it’s offensive to Asian people, but I don’t agree. I think it’s only truly offensive to the poor people in the restaurant who have enough sense not to get the dang sake bomb in the first place, and have to listen to the drunk group of people yelling loudly and banging on tables.
In other words, it’s fun!
Nothing about drinking bombs is traditional or respectful. No matter what bomb your chugging, you have to remember that you are…chugging. Not sipping graciously and talking about the qualities that are added to sake once you drop it like it’s hot into a cup of beer. Just because much about Japanese and other Asian cultures is traditional, don’t count what’s done with their booze as trashing it.
Plus, the shot had to come from somewhere.