> Korean Food top10 > Juntongju > Introdcution
of Juntongju
Origin
Liquor is a fermented drink in which various ingredients
including alcohol were created by microbes’ disintegration
of carbohydrates and is the oldest drink among human made
drinks. The origin of Korean liquor, Takju (unrefined rice
wine) and Yakju (rice wine) is not known exactly but based
on the literatures it seems to have developed over a long
period of time after it was created before Samhan age.
Various kinds of brewing were done in the middle of Goryeo
Dynasty and from that time on the kinds of wines such as
Takju, Yakju (Cheongju) and Soju (distilled liquor) were
started to be documented in the literature. In Joseon Dynasty,
the methods of brewage were diversified by region, family,
season and usage, which are largely categorized into Yakjus,
Takjus, Sojus and liquors for medicine use. From ancient
times, Koreans loved to brew wines, enjoyed drinking them
and had wisdom and intelligence to control liquor. Based
on long history and original culture, Koreans created its
own unique liquors and culture. Korean ancestors used to
express that they eat wines instead of saying that they
drink wines, as they have perceived wines as food instead
of merely taste beverage.