It is autumn, the season of high sky and plump horses. In this autumn, when many grains and fruits become ripe, our ancestors made liquors with grains, and we, their descendants, enjoy the culture of such liquors. In this issue, we will look at the various sides of traditional liquor.

Source. Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, 
Rural Development Administration, 
Ministry of Food and Drug Safety

Q. What type of liquor can be called traditional liquor?

Traditional liquor can be defined as an alcoholic beverage that inherits and preserves the Korean traditional brewing method, and reflects the phases of the time. In accordance with the Cultural Heritage Protection Act, three liquors, Gyeongju Gyodong Beopju, Munbaeju, and Myeoncheon Dugyunju, have been designated as national important intangible cultural assets. According to the Food Industry Promotion Act, among the Korea Grand Masters, 26 of them have been introducing traditional liquors. In a broad sense, liquor produced by using local specialties can also be defined as traditional liquor.

Q. There are a variety of traditional liquors available in the market. How would you classify them?

The type of traditional liquors is divided into three categories: takju, yakju, and soju. First, takju is made by using a variety of grains, including rice, barley, and wheat. Water and traditional yeast are added to hard-boiled rice, and this mixture is fermented to an appropriate temperature. When the liquor is ripened, the content is filtered through a sieve or net, and this is called takju. And when you leave takju as it is, the dregs settle down and clear liquor floats, and this is called yakju. Cheongju is the same as yakju, but according to the current Liquor Tax Act, cheongju is a type of clear liquor made by using the Japanese brewing method. Soju is a type of liquor made by distilling takju or yakju. It is clear, and has high alcohol content. 

Q. I heard that different types of traditional liquors are made according to the season.

Samheaju is the first liquor made on the new year, and is fermented at a low temperature for a long time. The rice, water, and yeast are mixed together on the first pig’s day on the lunar calendar, and crude liquor is added twice on a 12-day or 36-day interval, on the returning pig’s day, taking 3 steps to complete the process. Artisan Kwon Heeja, the Intangible Cultural Asset of Seoul, passed it on, and Korea Grand Master No. 69, Kim Taeksang, inherited it, and has been producing it.  
Yihwaju is made in the warm spring when pears are in full bloom. It is a high-quality takju that is known to have been brewed since the Goryeo Dynasty. After boiling the holed rice cakes, mix with yihwagok(yeast exclusively made with rice for yihwaju) with almost no water, and make it into a lump. When the lump is fermented, it will have the consistency of thick yogurt, which is eaten as it is or water is added. It has low alcohol content and has a savory taste, so it was regularly eaten by the elderly and children in the households of nobility. 
Gwahaju, made and consumed in the summer, is recorded in various literatures. In the old days, takju and yakju would spoil quickly as there were no refrigerators. So, gwahaju was made to prevent liquors from spoiling, and to increase storability by adding spirits with high alcohol content or soju during the fermentation process. Furthermore, there is sindoju, which is made with freshly harvested rice. 

Q. Can I purchase traditional liquor online?

In July 2017, the National Tax Service amended the “Liquor Notification and Liquor Tax Treatment Regulations” to allow traditional liquors to be sold in general commercial online shopping malls. This is to secure a minimum sales network to protect and cultivate small traditional liquor makers. As a result, traditional liquors made by the grand masters and designated as cultural properties, and special regional liquors(including Korean wine) made with local agricultural products can be purchased online. However, liquors not included in the category of traditional liquors cannot be purchased online according to the Liquor Tax Act.  

Q. Can anyone make traditional liquor?

Individuals are not required to get a liquor manufacturing license if they manufacture it for their own consumption. However, if you want to manufacture and sell after learning how to make liquor at home, you need to get a liquor manufacturing license. A person who manufactures traditional liquor is included in the food manufacturing and processing business under the Food Sanitation Act, so he/she must register at the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Those who manufacture and process traditional liquors must be tested for contagious diseases at public health centers once a year, and business owners who sell traditional liquors must also complete education at a food hygiene educational institution once a year. In many cases, groundwater is used to make traditional liquor, so water quality inspection must be performed once every six months. The produced product must also undergo self-quality inspection by a food hygiene inspection institution once every six months. Moreover, the raw materials and additives used must be the ones that are permitted for food manufacturing only, and liquor makers must also have use legal utensils and containers. Since it is consumed by humans, hygiene and management must be fully maintained.

Q. I want to learn about makgeolli properly, and become a makgeolli sommelier.

A makgeolli sommelier is responsible for purchasing and storing makgeolli at restaurants or specialty makgeolli stores, and recommends suitable makgeolli to customers to help them choose makgeolli. The person purchases makgeolli in consideration of the ingredients, country of origin, manufacturing process, and taste of makgeolli, stores it in a method suitable for each product, and manages inventory. Though there is no accredited certification, there are makgeolli sommelier courses at the Association of the Korean Regional-Product Liquor, Korean Traditional Liquor & Beverage Academy, Humanities Learning Center, and World Food Culture Center have a makgeolli sommelier course. A makgeolli sommelier specializes in makgeolli among our traditional liquors, and, in some cases, the makgeolli sommelier becomes a traditional liquor sommelier by studying a variety of traditional liquor based on his/her knowledge and experience in makgeolli, or a wine sommelier after studying wine. 

Q. How is alcohol content determined?

The liquors we drink can be largely divided into fermented liquor and distilled liquor. Fermented liquor is made by using leaven, and this is subdivided into grain liquor and fruit liquor. The distilled liquor is made from a separate distillation process, and is divided into several categories, depending on the distillation process. The alcohol content of the fermented liquors and distilled liquors categorized in this way is determined by different standards.

• Fermented liquor :  Alcohol content is determined by glucose content.
• Distilled liquor :   Alcohol content is determined by water content.