It’s time to raise a toast with ENA’s upcoming rom-com Brewing Love, which will have its spirited heroine Kim Se-jung (The Uncanny Counter 2) clinking glasses with the perceptive Lee Jong-won (Bad Memory Eraser). As our apéritif, we have script reading stills to whet our appetite ahead of the drama’s premiere.
Through six years of diligent work, our heroine Chae Yong-joo (Kim Se-jung) has earned the moniker of “the legendary sales queen” at the liquor company she works at. She’s fervent and direct, bolstered by a staunch constitution and steady mentality befitting her time in the special forces. Alas, Yong-joo is also partial to keeping her emotions bottled up — that is, until her branch finds itself facing imminent closure.
Resolving to revitalize her branch’s sales through introducing a new alcohol, Yong-joo seeks out the brewery CEO Yoon Min-joo (Lee Jong-won). With skills worthy of the “brewmaster” title, Min-joo’s beer is extraordinary enough to shake up the market — which is exactly what Yong-joo needs. But Min-joo is an empath who’s highly attuned to others’ feelings. In an effort to avoid the overwhelm that his extreme sensitivity often brings on, he’s retreated to a quiet countyside village so he can block out the influence of extraneous emotions.
Having focused solely on his brewery and his own emotions all this while, Min-joo soon finds his tranquil life upended by Yong-joo’s relentless sales pitches. Adding on to the chaos is Shin Do-hyun (Doom At Your Service) as the practical Bang Ah-reum, a planning team manager competing against her rival Yong-joo to recruit Min-joo first. Luckily for our brewer, his free-spirited best friend Oh Chan-hwi — played by Baek Sung-chul (Tell Me That You Love Me) — is in his corner, toast truck and all.
Adorably, our lead characters’ names match their personalities, since they can be read as “brave liquor” and “sensitive liquor” respectively. Will the straightforward “lager” Yong-joo mesh with the delicate “ale” Min-joo, creating a harmonious blend of complementary flavors? Or will their encounters leave them all shaken (not stirred) up? Either way, it’s certainly worth a shot!
Helmed by PD Park Seon-ho (Business Proposal) with scripts penned by Lee Jung-shin, Brewing Love will pour its first glass on November 4.