How Much Would It Take For You to Drink This Wasp-Whiskey?

Okay, technically it’s wasp-vodka, but that didn’t have quite the same zing.

A couple of months ago, we brought you the oddity that was feces wine, but apparently Japan’s love affair with purely wtf alcohol doesn’t stop there. Rocket News reports that some arguably sadistic “huntsmen” in the Kumamoto Prefecture have taken to trapping helpless wasps, drowning them in shochu alcohol and letting them ferment for three years to allow their toxins to flavor the drink. The result is a salty brown swill that smells like regular shochu but with just a hint of rotting flesh. It also fights fatigue.

RN describes the grueling process, which frankly makes me prefer the poop-wine over this stuff, just so the wasps don’t have to suffer anymore:

First, how the wasps are captured
Basically, if there’s an underground nest, then simply place a net over the entrance and cause a disturbance which will drive the bugs up into it. If the wasps are flying, then knock them out with a large swatter. Or, if there’s ever a nest built beneath some sort of overhang, then place a plastic bag over the nest and capture the wasps that way. Obviously, protective clothing is an absolute must while wasp hunting, though there are still instances where the wasps’ stingers make it through.

and

How this wasp-flavored liquor is made
First, a large number of living wasps is put in a mason jar, which is then filled with shouchuu. Afterward, the jar is sealed up tight and left alone for about three full years. Having no means to escape their alcohol hell, the wasps must suffer terribly within the jar, for they release a great deal of toxins as they die and then ferment. Again, protective clothing is absolutely necessary when preparing the jars.

You hear that? Alcohol hell. Suffer terribly. Almost makes you want to call up PETA and advocate for wasps’ rights.

Then again, you know, bugs.

H/T + Picthx Rocket News