Japanese Sake had been introduced from Korea?

韓国忠清北道清州市 청주시(淸州市)
"Sewang Brewery"
Cheongju city
History

Cheongju has been an important provincial town since ancient times.
During Hideyoshi's Invasions of Korea, Cheongju was the site of the Battle of Chongju, during which the Korean forces re-took the city from the Japanese forces in an important early victory.


http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/ynm0/52721717.html

[【韓国ブログ】他国の文化を昇華させる日本]
サーチナ
2009/05/30(土)

わくわくする題名、そう、「日本と中国に市場を占領されたキムチに続いて、焼酎市場まで日本に占領される前に、本家として権利を主張しなければならない」。

「西洋のカステラをよりしっとり、ふんわりとアレンジし“長崎のカステラは最高”といわしめた日本のように」。

西洋には「カステラ」はないんですよ。インドに「カレーライス」がないのと同様に。

「日本の焼酎と韓国の焼酎はどちらも伝統があり、そして全く別の物。大部分の文化の伝搬経路がそうだったように、たとえ焼酎が朝鮮半島から日本にもたらされたとしても、その起源をたどればモンゴルや中東まで遡れるだろう。韓国が起源だというのはおかしな話だ」。

いつもながらの、韓国式の屈折した優越感の表出。

英文 Wiki では、１３世紀にモンゴル人が高麗に焼酎をもたらした、とある。

「全く別の物」の酒が、なぜか日本でも韓国でも、同じ「焼酎」という漢字を使っているのは不思議。

ちなみに、日本語 Wiki では、韓国忠清北道清州市には、日本時代に「高見酒造」「清州酒造」という酒造所が存在した。

現在では "Sewang Brewery" という酒造所があるが、こちらは濁り酒「マッコリ」を造っている。

歴史的建築物に指定されているこの建物は、1929 年に日本人が設計し、朝鮮人が建造した。

これはおそらく、韓国に残る最古の酒造所であろう。

モンゴル人が高麗に伝えてから、日本人が併合するまでの間、焼酎がどこでどうやって造られていたのかは、良く知らない。

写真提供：

[Modern Architecture of Cheongju and Sewang Brewery]
by Robert Koehler on August 7, 2008
The Marmot’s Hole


1 名前：ちょーはにはにちゃんｗφ ★[] 投稿日：2007/11/17(土) 14:14:34 ID:???

「百済の仁番（インボン）という者が米酒を醸す方法を教えてくれて、彼を酒神として師事した」

日本の古代歴史書である『古事記』に出る句節。SAKEが韓半島から伝来したという証拠である。

だが他人の物を『私物化』する事に卓越な能力を持った日本人達は、清酒を日本の国酒として作った。世界の人々は清酒（rice wine)とは、すなわち『日本酒』であると認識する。

実は味も日本産のSAKEが韓国産の清酒よりも上というのが事実。酒の仕込みに使う材料や
製造の工程はほとんど似ているのだが…。

●“何故この様な結果になったのか”

市場競争の状態が何より一番大きなな理由。日本にはSAKEの製造会社だけでも約2,000社もある。市場で生き残る為には、当然熾烈な競争をくぐり抜けなければならない。

韓国の清酒市場はこれと正反対。韓国で清酒は実質的に無競争の製品である。韓国内にも清酒を生産する会社は、斗山（ドゥサン）酒類、麹醇堂（ククスンダン）など、2～3箇所に過ぎない。ブランド種類も『百花寿福』、『茶礼酒』、『天寿万福』など5～6種類位しか無い。この中でも『百花寿福』の市場シェアが、80%以上を占める。百花寿福の独占体制であるという事。

それに韓国産の清酒は大部分が祭祀酒として使われる。販売量の約80%が祭祀膳に乗せられたり、料理する時の調味酒として使われる。完全に飲用酒として売れるのは20%も満たない。

昨年飲用酒として販売された割合は、全体販売量のうち17.8%だった。これさえも過去と比較して高くなった数値である。去る2002年にはその割合が9.8%と、10%にも満たなかった。この4年間で飲用酒の販売の割合が二倍に増えたのも、日本式SAKEブームの影響が大きい。

これにより韓国内の清酒業界も、飲用清酒を開発した。

斗山酒類は去る5月25日、『多味seke』という飲用清酒を発売した。SAKEブームが始まった2004年から製品を開発して、今年には市場に発表したのである。

斗山主類で清酒ブランドマネージャーに働いている李再演代理は “最近消費刺字たちが日本式サケを好んでいて名前とデザインもそんな式で作った. 日本清州よりチープな価格に高級品質をお目見えしようと出市したこと”と言った.

だが韓国内の酒類業界は、相変らず清酒を重要商品として認識していない。市場自体が焼酒やビールに比べ、格段に小さい為である。

韓国内の酒類市場から、焼酒とビールを除いた低アルコール酒市場の割合は、2.5%に過ぎない。これらも梅酒や薬酒、野イチゴ酒などを全て合わせた物で、完全な清酒販売の割合はこれよりも更に少ない。

イ課長代理は、「最近の市場雰囲気を見ると、もう少し攻撃的にならなければいけないみたいだ。だが、清酒の特性自体が急速に拡散しにくい部分がある。まずダ『多味seke』を根深く定着させて、他の製品の発売開始を考える予定」と言いながら、新しい種類の飲用清酒発売開始に対し、慎重な態度を見せた。


NAVER/ソウル経済（原文　韓国語）
http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSD&mid=sec&sid1=103&oid=011&aid=0000206965

韩国原装雪中梅，清河，百花寿福，百岁酒华南地区招商

[리빙 앤 조이] 한국産 청주 백화수복 점유율 80%
| 기사입력 2007-11-14 11:06

판매량 80% 이상이 제사주로 소비

‘백제의 인번(仁番)이라는 사람이 미주(米酒) 빚는 방법을 가르쳐주어 그를 주신(酒神)으로 모셨다.’

일본의 고대 역사서인 ‘고사기(古史記)’에 나오는 구절이다. 사케가 한반도에서 전래했다는 증거다.

하지만 남의 것을 ‘자기화’하는 데 탁월한 능력을 가진 일본인들은 청주(淸酒)를 일본의 국주(國酒)로 만들었다. 세계인들은 ‘청주(rice wine)란 곧 니혼쥬(日本酒)’라고 인식한다.

사실 맛도 일본산 사케가 국내산 청주보다 나은 게 사실이다. 술을 빚는데 쓰는 재료나 제조공정은 거의 비슷한데 말이다.

왜 이런 결과가 나온 걸까.

시장의 경쟁 상황이 다른 게 가장 중요한 이유다. 일본엔 사케 제조 회사만 약 2,000개 정도나 된다. 시장에서 살아 남기 위해서는 당연히 치열한 경쟁을 뚫어야 한다.

한국의 청주 시장은 이와 정반대다. 한국에서 청주는 실질적으로 무경쟁 제품이다. 국내에도 청주를 생산하는 업체는 두산주류, 국순당 등 두세 군데에 불과하다. 브랜드 종류도 백화수복, 차례주, 천수만복 등 대여섯 개 정도 밖에 되지 않는다. 이 중에서도 백화수복의 사장 점유율이 80% 이상을 차지한다. 백화수복 독주 체제인 셈이다.

게다가 국산 청주는 대부분 제사주로 쓰인다. 판매량의 80% 정도가 제사상에 올라가거나 요리할 때 맛을 돋구기 위한 용도로 쓰인다. 온전히 음용주로 팔리는 경우는 20%도 채 되지 않는다.

지난해 음용주로 판매된 비중은 전체 판매량 중 17.8%였다. 이마저도 과거에 비해 많이 높아진 수치다. 지난 2002년엔 그 비중이 9.8%로 10%도 채 되지 않았다. 이렇게 지난 4년간 음용주 판매 비율이 두 배로 뛴 것도 일본식 사케 열풍에 힘입은 바 크다.

이에 따라 국내 청주 업계에서도 음용 청주를 개발했다.

두산주류는 지난 5월 25일 ■‘다미사케(多味seke)’라는 음용 청주를 출시했다. 사케 열풍이 불기 시작한 지난 2004년부터 제품을 개발해 올해에야 시장에 선을 보인 것이다.

두산주류에서 청주 브랜드 매니저로 일하고 있는 이재연 대리는 “최근 소비자자들이 일본식 사케를 선호하고 있어 이름과 디자인도 그런 식으로 만들었다. 일본 청주보다 저렴한 가격에 고급품질을 선보이고자 출시한 것”이라고 말했다.

그러나 국내 주류업계는 여전히 청주를 중요 상품으로 인식하고 있지는 않다. 시장 파이 자체가 소주나 맥주에 비해 현격히 작기 때문이다.

국내 주류 시장에서 소주와 맥주를 제외한 저도주 시장 비율은 2.5%에 불과하다. 이 마저도 매실주, 약주, 복분자 등을 모두 합쳐놓은 것이라서 온전한 청주 판매 비율은 이보다도 훨씬 작다.

이 대리는 “최근 시장 분위기를 보면 조금 더 공격적으로 해야 할 것 같다. 하지만 청주의 특성 자체가 급속도로 확산되기 어려운 부분이 있다. 우선 다미사케를 뿌리 깊게 정착시킨 후에야 다른 제품 출시를 고민할 예정”이라며 새 종류의 음용 청주 출시에 대해 신중한 태도를 보였다.

김면중 기자 whynot@sed.co.kr

ⓒ 한국아이닷컴, 무단전재 및 재배포 금지

http://birthofblues.livedoor.biz/archives/51349336.html

韓国で日本酒輸入業者が「辛口」などのラベル表示を商標登録

韓国で日本酒輸入業者が、日本酒のラベルに書かれた「辛口」や「特撰(せん)」という文字を商標登録した。そのため、このような文字が書かれている日本酒が、韓国へ自由に輸出できなくなる可能性がある。

日本酒のラベルに表示された日本語が、韓国で商標登録され、騒動になっている。
韓国・ソウルの日本酒輸入業者「日本酒コリア」は、「特撰」、「上撰」、「辛口」など、日本酒について表す一般的な言葉27個を、韓国の特許庁に申請し、登録した。
さらに、「すっきり」や「キレ」などの言葉26個も、現在申請中だという。

FNNは、騒動の張本人であるヤン・ビョンソク代表を直撃した。
ヤン代表は「わたしは、特許庁に申請の料金を払い、登録したので、問題ありません。(商標登録された)その部分だけパッケージを変えれば可能です」と話した。
ヤン代表によると、以前、この会社で扱っていた日本酒の名前を、ほかの業者に商標登録された苦い経験があり、自分の会社が扱う日本酒を守るために、商標登録に踏み切ったという。

一方、韓国の日本酒輸入の最大手「全日本酒類」は、反発している。
全日本酒類のソ・ジョンフン社長は「一般的な名詞でありながら、それを利用して自分のものというのは、ちょっとおかしい。(ラベルを貼り替えれば売れる?)それは不可能です。日本の業者が認めてくれないはず」と話した。
「特撰」や「辛口」などの日本語が表示されている日本酒は、今後、日本酒コリアを通さないと販売できなくなる。


FNNニュース: 韓国で日本酒輸入業者... via kwout


他人の物を『私物化』する事に卓越な能力を持った日本人達が韓酒をチョッパリ国酒としてパクった経緯について、５年前のスレを参考貼付。


http://oncon.seesaa.net/article/201856857.html



2011年05月17日
韓国の起源捏造－須須許理と日本酒
ペ・ジュンホ（クッスン堂社長）が韓国経済で「私たちの酒と日本酒 」と題して次のように語った。

歴史を見れば1700年前、日本に醸造する方法を伝授した人物は他でもない百済の人、仁番（インボン）だ。彼の他の名前は「お酒を醸す」という意味のススボリ（訳注：須々許理（すすこり）のこと）だったという。ワインのソムリエやサケの聞き酒と似た役割をする人を称する純韓国語だ。我が国が日本に醸造法を伝えたというのに、本来のススボリという言葉が日本で見つかるという歴史的事実がアイロニーだ。

数千年の私たちの歴史の中で最近100年余りを除けば酒と酒文化に関する限り我が国は世界のどこにも遅れをとらない先進国だった。断絶した酒の歴史を継続するためには政府と学界、民間団体の努力に劣らず国民の私たちの酒に対する関心と愛が必要だ。



日本酒に関する韓国人の歴史認識は以下のようなものらしい。

「百済の仁番（インボン）という者が米酒を醸す方法を教えてくれて、彼を酒神として師事した」

日本の古代歴史書である『古事記』に出る句節。酒が韓半島から伝来したという証拠である。だが他人の物を『私物化』する事に卓越な能力を持った日本人達は、清酒を日本の国酒として作った。世界の人々は清酒（rice wine）とは、すなわち『日本酒』であると認識する。

起源捏造をほしいままにする韓国人は本当に盗人猛々しいと憤る方は、ブロガーへ執筆意欲を与える一日一押人気ブログランキングをクリック願います。

古事記によれば、応神天皇が百済に「もし賢し人あれば貢上（たてまつ）れ」と命じたところ、学者の和邇、鍛冶人の卓素、織物工の西素、酒醸人の仁番（須須許理）が百済より日本（倭）に渡来した。

かれこの須須許理、大御酒を醸みて献りき。ここに天皇、この献れる大御酒にうらげて、御歌をよみしたまいしく、

須須許理が　醸みし御酒に　われ酔いにけり。事無酒咲酒に　われ酔いにけり（新訂古事記―付 現代語訳138ページ）。

須須許理の話は、百済が日本（倭）に朝貢していた証拠である。しかもこの話の前段によれば、吉野山の国主（国巣）人が応神天皇に大御酒を献上していた。日本書紀によれば、国巣人が応神天皇に献上した酒は醴酒（こざけ、醴とは甘酒のことで、醴酒は米四升、麹二升、酒三升、和合醸造と造酒司式にあり、その味美甘とされている）であった。

古事記および日本書紀によれば、仁番（須須許理）の来日前から応神天皇と神功皇后は酒を飲みながら歌を詠まれ、東征中の神武天皇も酒と肉を皇軍兵士に分け与え、来目歌を詠まれた。韓国人の歴史認識は私欲に塗れた大虚構である。

日本酒の研究に生涯を捧げた醗酵学者の坂口謹一郎博士の日本の酒によれば、古い文明は必ず美酒を持つという。醸造酒でありながら世界的に見ても珍しい蒸留酒並みのアルコール度を誇る日本酒が外国人のあいだで人気を博するや、韓国人はそれに嫉妬し、古事記を歪曲して歴史を偽造し、日本酒の起源を捏造して日本人が地道に開拓した日本酒の国際販路にタダ乗りし、日本人を侮辱しながら韓国の清酒を外国人に売ろうとするのである。

韓国人の目には、世界の人々が清酒（rice wine）を『日本酒』であると認識していることは、日本人が韓国人の物を私物化していると映るのである。起源捏造をほしいままにする韓国人は本当に盗人猛々しい。



http://samuraimoon.blog67.fc2.com/blog-entry-1463.html

＞歴史を見れば1700年前、日本に醸造する方法を伝授した人物は他でもない百済の人、仁番（インボン）だ。
　アホくさ。この記事を書いたひとは『古事記』中つ巻の応神天皇の
「また、秦の造が祖、漢の直が祖、また酒を醸むことを知れる人、名は仁番、亦の名は須須許理ら参渡り来ぬ。かれ、この須須許理、大神酒を醸みて献りき」
のくだりだけを読んでホルホルしていらっしゃるのでしょうが、はっきり言ってマヌケのきわみです。
　なぜならおなじ『古事記』応神天皇の須須許理よりも前のところに
「また、吉野の白檮の上に、横臼を作りて、その横臼に大御酒を醸みて、その大御酒を献りし時に、口鼓を撃ちて、伎を為して、歌ひしく、
　　白檮の上に　横臼を作り
　　横臼に　醸みし大御酒
　　うまらに　聞こしもち飲せ　まろが父
　この歌は、国主ら、大贄献る時時に、恒に今に至るまでに、詠ふ歌ぞ」
とはっきり書かれているからです。あと応神天皇の父親の仲哀天皇のところにも息長帯日賣（いわゆる神功皇后）や武内宿禰が“醸んだ酒”について言及しています。『古事記』を信ずるならば須須許理よりもまえに日本に醸造酒があったことは確実です。それとも超時空太閤HIDEYOSHIのときとおなじように時の流れをまったく無視して須須許理が吉野の国主や神功皇后に醸造酒をおしえてやったニダ！　とでも言いはるつもりでしょうか。

　　　コピー天国・中国に韓国のセウカンのパクリも登場（１） [05/17]




http://www.rjkoehler.com/2008/08/07/modern-architecture-of-cheongju-and-sewang-brewery/

The Marmot's Hole
Korea... in Blog Format
Modern Architecture of Cheongju and Sewang Brewery
by ROBERT KOEHLER on AUGUST 7, 2008
in PHOTOS OF KOREA

Sewang Brewery (formerly Deoksan Brewery), built in 1930.

I started Day 2 of my vacation in Cheongju, the capital of Chungcheonbuk-do, to check out the city’s rich modern architectural heritage and finished in Jincheon, where I spent the afternoon at Sewang Brewery, which has been producing fine traditional rice wines in their historic brewery for three generations.


Cheongju: Intro

Cheongju, aside from being the home of the Hanhwa Eagles baseball team and the Korean Air Force Academy, is also the provincial capital of Chungcheongbuk-do and a fairly large city of over 600,000 souls. Unlike nearby Daejeon, which is essentially a product of colonial rule, Cheongju has been a regional center for centuries, sitting as it does amidst some of Korea’s finest farmland. The city grew significantly with the opening of the Chungbuk railway line in the 1920s; this development has left behind a pretty significant modern architectural heritage that includes public offices and schools.

Cheongju is a major transportation hub, so getting there shouldn’t present a problem. Most of the modern historic sites are in the old downtown area of Sangdang-gu.

Main Hall, Chungcheongbukdo Provincial Hall

Registered Cultural Property No. 55.

Built in 1937, the Provincial Hall in Munhwa-dong is an imposing brick-and-tile structure with a heavy front porch. Interestingly, it was constructed with a good deal of cooperation and financial support from provincial residents.



The lobby, done up in an quasi-Art Deco fashion like that of Kyungpook National University Medical Center in Daegu, has been well preserved. I really like the Art Deco ornaments on the central staircase.

Former Chungbuk Industrial Promotion Office

Registered Cultural Property No. 352.

Also part of the Provincial Hall complex, this funky little building is actually a year older than the Main Hall. Hmmm, 1930s, curved lines, porthole windows… Streamline Moderne, perhaps?

Uri Yeneungwon House

Registered Cultural Property No. 9.

This exotic bungalow-style residence was built in 1924 as the residence of a Japanese bank manager. After Liberation, it was used for several decades by the YMCA, and for the last 30 years it’s been a kindergarten/arts school. The school is run by a lovely elderly woman who specializes in the marimba — two of her former students, one a student in the music school of a prestigious Seoul university and the other a student at a major Seoul school for the arts, were rehearsing when I visited, so the owner invited me in to listen.

The house is located just behind Jungang Elementary School, a short walk from the Provincial Hall.

Old Cheongju Public Normal School Building

Registered Cultural Property No. 350.

Located on the campus of Juseong Elementary School in Yeong-dong, the Old Cheongju Public Normal School Building was built in 1923 and is the oldest schoolhouse in Chungcheongbukdo. The school itself is even older, having been founded in 1907 as the first modern school in the province.

Now used as the Juseong Educational Museum, it’s architecturally quite interesting, with its unique gabled roof with ornamental windows on the facade.

Classroom, Daeseong Girls Middle School

Registered Cultural Property No. 351.

With its Japanese-style roof, twin-arched entrance and Tuscan-order column, you might think this old schoolhouse was built during the colonial era, but in fact, it’s from 1954, and represents an early post-Liberation Korean attempt at Western-style modern architecture.

Built originally for Cheongju National University, it is now used as a gymnasium by Daeseong Girls Middle School.

Old Main Hall, Cheongju Commercial High School

Registered Cultural Property No. 6.

Cheongju Commercial High School, recently renamed Daeseong High School, has long been one of the most important private higher educational facilities in the province. In the colonial era, it trained a lot of the builders who would develop Cheongju.

The old red-brick schoolhouse was built in 1936 and has changed little since.

The interior is appropriate musky, with displays set up with artifacts from the school’s history. Along the hall hang old photos documenting the school’s past, and are well worth seeing. Kept in cases near the entrance is a mountain of trophies the school has won throughout its illustrious past.

Other Sites in Cheongju

One of the sites I really, really wanted to see while in Cheongju was the Provincial Governor’s Residence (Registered Cultural Property 353), which was built in 1939. It’s a beautiful building that blends Western and Japanese designs, but unfortunately, it’s off-limits to the public. In fact, I’ve been able to find only one photo of it, taken by the Cultural Properties Administration. I did make the effort, however — I spend much of the morning bouncing around the Provincial Hall trying to arrange a visit, not to no avail. That said, the officials really did go out of their way to help, which impressed me, because they could have just as easily told me to bugger off.

Two other sites of interest that I didn’t get to see are Cheongju Anglican Church and Tapdong Yanggwan, which was built as a residence for American missionaries in the early 20th century.

Jincheon-gun

About an hour north of Cheongju is the country of Jincheon-gun, a quiet farming community that’s famous for its high-quality rice. Where there’s good rice, there’s good rice wine, and my final destination for the day was Sewang Brewery. which for the last 70 years has been producing some of Korea’s best traditional firewater.

Jincheon is about two hours by bus from Seoul’s Dongseoul or Nambu bus terminals. From Cheongju, however, it’s only about 40 minutes away — bus #711 will take you to Jincheon Bus Terminal.

Jincheon Eumnaeri Anglican Church

Registered Cultural Property No. 8.

A short taxi ride from Jincheon Bus Terminal, on a hill overlooking the rice fields below, is Jincheon Eumnaeri Anglican Church. Built in 1923 by Father George Ernest Hewlett to replace an older structure, the church is similar to other old Anglican churches in its blending of Korean and Western architectural styles.

Jincheon Eumnaeri Anglican Church was the first Anglican church in the province, and placed a large role in the educational, medical and cultural development of Jincheon. Today, it is watched over by a nice young priest and his family, and has a congregation of about 200. Unfortunately, most of the church activities take place in a newly built complex in back, so the old church is quite underutilized.

Sewang Brewery

Registered Cultural Property No. 58.

I can’t say enough about Sewang Brewery, formerly Deoksan Brewery, located a short bus ride from downtown Jincheon-gun in Deoksan-myeon. If you visit just one place from this collection of vacation posts, make it this one.

Sewang Brewery was founded in 1929 by brewer Lee Jang-beom, and has changed remarkably little since then. The beautiful wooden brewery building, designed by a Japanese architect and constructed by Korean builders, was completed in 1930. Built of fir and cedar transported all the way from Mt. Baekdusan, the factory has managed to make it through the decades virtually in its original condition. It helps, of course, that it still does what it was purpose-built to do — produce high-quality takju (a.k.a makkeolli) and yakju using old-fashioned techniques handed down over three generations. This is very, very special place where architecture, history, cultural tradition, and the fine rice and water of Jincheon-gun blend into one.

The founder’s grandson, Lee Gyu-haeng, runs the establishment with his wife and a small staff of employees. For a small family brewery operating out of a 78-year-old factory, they produce a surprisingly large amount of product and have drawn no small amount of praise from the press and traditional wine connoisseurs, not the least of whom was reportedly late president Park Chung-hee, who would send his security detail to the brewery to score booze every time the dictator visited to Jincheon (which, BTW, was often). Lee and his wife are a very charming couple who will talk your ear off about brewing and the history of the company. Interestingly, Lee was an architect before taking over the family business in 1998, which gives him a particular appreciation of his brewery’s architectural importance.

The truss work on the ceiling of the brewery. The windows were designed to provide the perfect ventilation for fermenting booze. BTW, as soon as you walk into the place, you’re overtaken with the smell of fermenting takju and yakju, so you know you’re in a brewery.

Rice wines fermenting in clay jars, just like your grandmother used to make.

When I say nothing has changed, I mean nothing has changed — this clay jar was made in 1935 in nearby Yongmongni Kiln.

Mr. Lee is always experimenting with recipes to develop new products in addition to his staple firewaters (OK, so I guess some things have changed). This here is red wine produced from black rice; it took a decade to develop, and is quite, quite good. It apparently impressed a visiting agro-science professor from UC Davis, too.

The name “Mont Grande” comes from “Deoksan,” BTW.

This is Cheonmahwalboju, and comes in clay jars modeled on the wind chimes of the great stone pagoda of Mireuksaji in Iksan. It’s made from rice and 19 medicinal herbs, including cheonma (Tian Ma in Chinese), or Gastrodia Root, a Jincheon-gun specialty product. I’ve been told that male drinkers will notice it puts lead in their pencils, so to speak.

Ah, this little baby isn’t on the market yet. In fact, it doesn’t even have a name. Ranging from 18 to 22% alcohol depending on the batch (Lee notes that the 22% number is significant, in that most brewers consider it impossible to brew over 20% using fermentation), what it will do is get you hammered fast, but you recover quick, too. Its creator said it also has amazing cleansing properties that help you lose weight — in fact, he lost 7kg during its development.

Then, of course, there’s always the takju and yakju for which the brewery is rightfully famous — there’s a full list of products on their homepage.

Coincidentally, Joel Browning did a feature on the brewery for my magazine last year. It has contact information (the phone number anyway is [043] 536－3567) and directions to the brewery, so check it out. The story also recounts some of the brewery’s fascinating history, including how it managed to survive the Korean War.

Anyway, do yourself a favor and visit the place. And please, buy their stuff! Give the commercially produced crap a rest and drink some good stuff for a change!




http://www.rjkoehler.com/travelog/2011/05/sewang-brewery-botapsa-temple/


Sewang Brewery & Botapsa Temple
MAY 20, 2011 BY ROBERT KOEHLER 14 COMMENTS
Taking advantage of the fine weather Saturday, I went down to Jincheon, a pleasant little rural community in lovely Chungcheongbuk-do, to visit the charming Buddhist temple of Botapsa, known to aficionados of Korean traditional architecture for its majestic three-story wooden pagoda, the only one of its kind in Korea.
While I was in town, though, I also swung by an old favorite place of mine, Sewang Brewery, one of only a handful of historic breweries still in operation in Korea.
Sewang Brewery (former Deoksan Brewery)

 

It might seem a tad unorthodox to begin a visit to a Buddhist temple by stopping by a brewery, but Sewang Brewery is no ordinary booze maker. Run by the same family for three generations, Sewang Brewery is a piece of living history. The old brewery building, designed by a Japanese architect and built of pine cut from the thick forests of Mt. Baekdusan, was completed in 1930, and has changed very little since then. Indeed, so perfectly was it designed for its intended task that it hasn’t had to. The building’s natural ventilation is so good that when repair work was done in 2006, it was found that its framework hadn’t rotted at all. Even the clay jars in which the booze ferments date from the 1930s.

Sewang Brewery specializes is fermented beverages like makgeolli and yakju. Makgeolli, which seems to be all the rage nowadays, is a milky rice beer that has long provided hard-working Korean farmers with some welcome midday relief. Yakju (“Medicinal Wine”), on the other hand, is a more refined rice wine, and is usually clear. Sewang CEO and master brewer Lee Gyu-haeng is a pretty industrious guy who likes to experiment, so you’ll find here a variety of different makgeolli and yakju products.
If you can understand Korean, you can watch this video of Lee explaining the booze-making process in the fermentation room:

Sewang Brewery -Makgeolli Korean Rice Wine permentation

They were quite busy when I visited, so I didn’t want to photograph too much lest I get in the way (and really, who likes to be photographed at work?). I did get a photograph of this little piece of calligraphy on the back wall, which means, “If you drink three glasses, you can understand the Great Path. If you drink one mal (about 18 liters), you become one with nature. Just next door, they’ve recently built a tasting center and gallery—designed in the shape of an oak barrel, clay jar and yakju bottle—where you can learn more about Korean alcohol and the history of Sewang Brewery and eat (you should make a reservation ahead of time, though, so call them up at 043-536-3567). Some of the old scrapbooks on hand are fascinating, with old photos, advertisements and documents related to the brewery. The brewery itself has had a colorful past. During the Korean War, Lee’s father hid from the North Koreans by hiding in the space above the fermentation room ceiling, where rice chaff is stored. Retreating South Koreans troops, meanwhile, wanted to burn the place down lest it be used by the enemy, but his grandfather convinced them not to by making some, ahem, contributions to the war effort. The founder of the company, Lee Jang-beom, served as an election advisor to Sin Ik-hee, the opposition presidential candidate who died just 10 days prior to the 1956 election. The story of the brewery even got featured in cartoonist Huh Young-man‘s serial in the Dong-A Ilbo, “Sikgaek.” The makgeolli-brewing industry took a hit in the 1960s when President Park Chung-hee, himself a makgeolli fan, banned the making of makgeolli using rice, citing—with some justification, I’d imagine, as these were the barley days—the lack of rice to actually eat. Makgeolli brewers for a time turned to other grains, like corn, to brew their stuff. As hard as it may be to believe, the brewery was almost demolished in 2001 to make way for road construction. Fortunately, in 2003, it was listed as a registered cultural property. Just some of the high-quality beverages produced by Sewang Brewery. You can find their stuff at a number of places around Seoul, including Samcheonggak. You can also order online via their website here. Botapsa Temple Now, the real reason I was in Jincheon was to visit Botapsa Temple, a small Buddhist nunnery located about 12km outside of town in a lotus-shaped valley at the foot of Mt. Boryeonsan. I’d been here once before, actually, about eight or so years ago. I believe it was the first Buddha’s Birthday my wife and I spent together after we were married; we got there at dawn on a misty, drizzling day, and it was fantastic. Temples draw much of their strength and spirit from the mountains on which their built, and Botapsa, lovingly embraced by Mt. Boryeonsan, radiates warmth and happiness. As a local visiting the temple Saturday told me, “The mountain surrounding the temple is shaped like a lotus blossom, so the atmosphere here is really good.” Somebody — I think one of the families in the tiny collection of houses in front of the temple — keeps a couple of cows. I don’t think this one is related to late star of “Old Partner,” but it looks very similar. Niece, perhaps? Personally, I can’t see a cow and not think of the “10 Ox-Herding Pictures,” a Zen teaching tool commonly painted on the halls of Korean Buddhist temples. In front of the temple entrance is a mighty zelkova tree that is 300 years old. Apparently, zelkova can live over 1,000 years. The zelkova is commonly used as an ornamental tree to provide shade, or an a guardian tree: Zelkova tree lives in the warm regions of Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and China. The tree looks rounded as its stems spread to all directions. The flowers bloom in May and the disk-shaped fruit ripens in October. With a large trunk and a long lifespan, zelkova trees have been planted next to pavilions to provide cool rest areas or as guardian trees to protect villages. Botapsa is a relatively new temple, completed in 1992. The focal point of the temple, the Great Pagoda for National Unification, was built by a team of master woodcutters led by Shin Young-hoon and based on what they believe the nine-story wooden pagoda of Gyeongju’s Hwangnyongsa Temple was like. Like Hwangnyongsa’s pagoda, which was built as an act of devotion so that Silla might unify the Korean Peninsula, the Botapsa pagoda was built as a prayer for unification between North and South Korea and, according to the temple’s website, the old Goguryeo lands. What the retrieval of Goguryeo’s old lands in Manchuria would entail, I shudder to imagine, but it pays to be ambitious, I suppose. The pagoda is an evolution of the Indian stupa, a place were relics of the Buddha were stored. In East Asia, pagodas are usually built of either 1) wood, 2) brick, or 3) stone. In China and Korea, wooden pagodas were initially quite popular, but over time, China trended towards building pagodas of brick and stone, while Korea preferred stone, particularly after the Three Kingdoms Era. Japan, meanwhile, continued to build wooden pagodas — indeed, the wood pagoda is rather iconic Japanese image. Wood pagodas, while beautiful, tend to burn rather easily, especially when they’re targeted by invading armies. The legendary nine-story pagoda of Hwangnyongsa Temple, built by a Baekje architect hired by the Silla royal family, survived until 1238, when sadly, it was burnt down by the the, ahem, “visiting” forces of a certain peace-loving Central Asian nation I won’t name for reasons of domestic harmony. There are two surviving examples of wooden pagoda construction, though, the Palsangjeon of Beopjusa Temple in Songnisan National Park and the Daeungjeon of Ssangbongsa in Hwasun (the latter, however, is a reconstruction, the original having burned down in a fire in the 1980s). Both these were erected in the Joseon Era. The best example of Korean wooden pagoda construction, however, is actually in Japan — the fantastic Buddhist temple of Horyuji in Nara, which I was lucky enough to visit about a decade ago, was built largely by Baekje artisans in the seventh century. The Botapsa pagoda is three stories, and you can ascend all three via an internal staircase, as was the case with the Hwangnyongsa pagoda. In fact, according to the temple, it’s the first climbable pagoda built in Korea since the Hwangyongsa pagoda. Each floor serves a separate function — the first floor holds a Buddha image, the second floor holds the Buddhist scriptures, and the third an image of the Maitreya. There’s also an exhibit hall with photos of pagodas from around East Asia. While you’re climbing the pagoda, keep in mind that in keeping with traditional building techniques, not a single nail was used in its construction. On the temple site is an old stone monument from the early Goryeo era. Interestingly, it has no text. The nuns at Botapsa run a tight ship, and their gardens are exquisite. Now, I went to Botapsa with the intention of shooting night shots of the pagoda. Sadly, however, as I was waiting around after sundown, one of the nuns informed me that the lighting system was down. Unfortunately, by the time I learned this, the last bus to Seoul had departed from Jincheon, so I needed to take a bus to Cheongju, switch to a train and then change again to the KTX at Osong. This was not entirely unpleasant, mind you, although it did leave me wondering how in the world Osong got a KTX stop. Getting There Getting to Jincheon is simple enough — just take a bus from Seoul’s Nambu Station. The trip takes about two hours. Once you’re in Jincheon, you can take a local bus to Deoksan-myeon to visit Sewang Brewery. In theory, there are four buses that take you to Botapsa, too, but I just took a taxi, which cost about 15,000 won.

test