| Korean alcoholic beverages | |
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A porcelain bottle and glass of okroju, a distilled liquor produced in Gyeonggi-do, South Korea |
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| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 술 / 주 |
| Hanja | 酒 |
| Revised Romanization | sul / ju |
| McCune–Reischauer | sul / chu |
Korean culture has a great variety of traditional alcoholic beverages, most of which are called by the Sino-Korean term ju (hangul: 주; hanja: 酒).
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Goguryeo was the northern most of the three kingdoms on the Korean peninsula from the 3rd century to the 7th century (the Three Kingdoms Era). Archaeological evidence indicates that the Goguryeo culture had a highly developed tradition of fermented foods and drink. At that time they made drinks using nuruk (fermentation mix) and malt. The methods used today were developed 1,700 years ago. Recorded methods of making sul date from as early as A.D. 430.
Baekje was the second of the Three Kingdoms and it dominated the southwestern part of the peninsula. Sul was introduced to Japan from Baekje by Susubori (Korean for brewer) who became the Japanese god of drink. According to an old Japanese archival text "Ground Rice," Susubori offered sul to a Japanese king. This was the king's first taste of alcohol and it made him joyous and he sang aloud.
Silla was the third of the Three Kingdoms, dominating in the southeast region and eventually unifying the peninsula in the 7th century. Silla was a younger state and was at first less developed than Goguryeo and Baekje. This included their sul making techniques. However, Silla rapidly caught up with its older neighbors in all areas. The Silla text 'Jibung Yuseol' gives evidence of Silla's sul making tradition.
In Jewang ungi, a history book during the Goryeo Dynasty, a myth regarding the origin of alcoholic drinks appears. Once upon a time, there was a king who enjoyed using alcohol to tempt a woman to want to have many children. When their son was born, they named him Sul. The word sul (hangul: 술), referring to alcoholic beverages, came from a blending of the words "su" (hangul: 수; hanja: 水) and "bul" (hangul: 불), meaning "water" and "fire", respectively. That is, "firewater" originated from the boiling liquid.[1] This is popular etymology at best.
The production and demand for traditional Korean wines and liquors declined sharply beginning during the colonial period. In 1986, in an effort to remedy this situation, the Cultural Heritage Administration of South Korea selected 86 varieties of traditionally brewed alcoholic beverages as cultural properties, with twelve types selected as Important Intangible Cultural Properties of Korea, each hailing from its own locality.
In Korea, the major crop has historically been rice, and thus most Korean traditional alcoholic beverages have been made from rice, of both the glutinous and non-glutinous variety, which are fermented with the aid of yeast and nuruk, a wheat-based source of the enzyme amylase. Additionally, Koreans often use fruits, flowers, herbs, and other ingredients to flavor these beverages, to a much greater extent than Chinese wines.
There are six main types of Korean alcoholic beverages: yakju, distilled liquors (including soju), takju, fruit wines, flower wines, and medicinal wines.
Yakju (hangul: 약주; hanja: 藥酒; literally "medicinal alcohol") is a refined rice wine made from steamed rice that has gone through several fermentation stages. It is also called myeongyakju or beopju and is distinguished from takju by its relative clarity.
Varieties include baekhaju (백하주), which is made from glutinous rice and Korean nuruk, [2] and Heukmeeju (hangul: 흑미주; hanja: 黑米酒; literally "black rice wine"), which is made from black rice. [3]
Cheongju (hangul: 청주; hanja: 淸酒; literally "clear wine" or "clear liquor") is a clear rice wine similar to Japanese sake. One popular brand of cheongju is Chung Ha (청하), which is widely available at Korean restaurants. There are various local variations, including beopju, which is brewed in the ancient city of Gyeongju.[2]
Korean distilled liquors include goryangju (hangul: 고량주; hanja: 高梁酒; also spelled koryangju; made from sorghum and similar to Chinese gaoliang jiu) and okroju (hangul: 옥로주; hanja: 玉露酒; made from rice and Job's Tears).[4] Another variety, called munbaeju (문배주), has the distinction of being South Korea's Important Intangible Cultural Property Number 86-1. Munbaeju is a traditional aged distilled liquor made of malted millet, sorghum, wheat, rice, and nuruk (fermentation starter), with a strength of 40 percent alcohol by volume. It originates in the Pyongyang region of North Korea and is noted for its fragrance, which is said to resemble the flower of the munbae tree (similar to a pear).[2][3]
Soju (hangul: 소주; hanja: 燒酒), a clear, slightly sweet distilled spirit, is by far the most popular Korean liquor. It is made from grain or sweet potatoes and is generally inexpensive. It typically has an alcohol content of 40 proof (20% alc. by volume). There is a version with top notch ingredients distilled using traditional methods that hails from the city of Andong that is 90 to 100 proof. This version has a government protection/regulation seal, as Andong has historically been known as a fine soju center among other things. While all soju in Korea are priced almost identically (inexpensively as previously mentioned), Andong soju commands more than 20 times that price. It is the cognac to commercial soju's vin du pays. In the late 20th century soju flavored with lemon or green tea became available. The Japanese version is called Shōchū.
Makgeolli (막걸리), also known as takju (hangul: 탁주; hanja: 濁酒), is a milky, sweet alcoholic beverage made from rice. It is also called nongju (hangul: 농주; hanja: 農酒; lit. "farmers' alcohol"). A regional variant, originally from Gyeonggi-do, is called dongdongju. Another variety, called ihwaju (hangul: 이화주; hanja: 梨花酒; literally "pear blossom wine") was so named because it was brewed from rice with rice malt that had fermented during the pear blossom season.[5] Ihwaju is often so thick that it must be eaten with a spoon.
A similar drink is called gamju; this name is also used for various non-alcoholic sweet drinks including sikhye (식혜).
Korea has a number of traditional fruit wines, produced by combining fruits or berries with alcohol. Podoju (포도주, 葡萄酒) is made from rice wine that is mixed with grapes. The most popular fruit wines are made from maesil plums (such wine called maesilju, mae hwa su, mae chui soon, or Seol Joong Mae), bokbunja (복분자, Korean black raspberries, Rubus coreanus Miquel, 15% alcohol)[6], Chinese quinces, cherries, pine fruits, and pomegranates. Bokbunja ju (복분자주, 覆盆子酒, lit. bokbunja wine) is said by many to be especially good for sexual stamina.[4]
There are a number of Korean traditional wines produced from flowers. These include wines made from chrysanthemums, called gukhwaju (국화주, 菊花酒; marketed by Jinro as Chun Kook),photo 1photo 2 acacia flowers, maesil blossoms (maehwaju, 梅花酒), peach blossoms (dohwaju, 桃花酒), honeysuckle (indongju, 인동주, 忍冬酒), wild roses, and sweet briar petals and berries.[7]
Dugyeonju (두견주, 杜鵑酒) is a wine made from azalea petals, produced in Chungcheong Province. It is sweet, viscous, and light yellowish brown in color, with a strength of about 21% alcohol. Myeoncheon Dugyeonju is designated by the South Korean government as Important Intangible Cultural Property No. 86-2.[8]
Another variety of flower wine, called baekhwaju (hangul: 백화주; hanja: 白花酒), is made from 100 varieties of flowers.[9]
Medicinal liqueurs, called yagyongju (약용주, 藥用酒) are produced by combining medicinal seeds, herbs, and roots with alcohol.
Beer (called maekju; hangul: 맥주; hanja: 麥酒 in Korean) was introduced to Korea by Europeans and there are several breweries in South Korea.
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