Four Loko, that dangerous concoction of alcohol and stimulants, just made its way to China — and people are loving it.
Americans may remember Four Loko as the party drink that led to a series of hospitalizations, but in China, people are calling it shi shen jiu or “lose virginity liquor.” According to Quartz, the drink is currently marketed as “blackout in a can.” It’s available on China’s biggest online shopping portals.
Four Loko got its name from the nasty combination of four chemicals: alcohol (depressant), caffeine (stimulant), guarana (Brazilian stimulant) and taurine (stimulant also used in energy drinks). Manufactured by Chicago’s Phusion Projects, Four Loko resulted in several injuries and deaths in the U.S. where is is known to destroy the brain cells and livers of consumers.
This time, the drink is so popular in China that tens of thousands of cans were sold over online retailer Taobao, reports BuzzFeed. Other sellers include Alibaba, JD.com and Nuomi.com. Interestingly, Four Loko hopes to launch directly in China as well. It already has a Chinese-dedicated webpage and will apparently launch a China-exclusive product called Four Loko 888. Four Loko 888 will not be sold in the U.S., reportedly, to prevent counterfeits in the Chinese market.
So far, the drink’s official distributor in China is debated as multiple companies claim to be the one.
