The Story of World Liquors

It is possible to think of the negative images of alcohol such as drunken violence, which is becoming a social issue nowadays, but there are many positive effects as well, including brightening up the atmosphere and functioning as medicines for our bodies. Depending on how much we know well about liquors, they can be both beneficial and poisonous. This session is about the liquors of the world and their cultures.

Wines can be largely categorized into drinks for before, during and after meals. The aperitif wine for before meals is the beverage which marks the beginning of a meal. "Aperitif" means not only 'beginning' but also 'welcome' for guests, playing the role of enhancing appetites. Therefore, it is recommended to choose the aperitif wines that can elevate the mood of the party for the invited guests. We now look closer at aperitif wines.

Table wine originally is a wine term referring to every wine with less than 14% of alcohol strength, but can be used especially for wines enjoyed during meals. As it is intended to be enjoyed with meals, the harmony between the wine and the food is also important. The French word "marriage" primarily means "marriage", yet not only limited to the marriage of human beings but also of food. In English-speaking cultures, it can be expressed as "food and wine pairing". Let's explore the world of table wines.

Dessert in French means "to finish a meal" or "to clean the table". As desserts are for concluding meals, people eat sweet items to clam their appetites and feel refreshed. So, wines with high level of sweetness deserve to be served as dessert wines. Now. let's learn more about dessert wines enjoyed after meals.

Beer is one of the most popular alcohols because it is cheap, can be manufactured regardless of the season and has low alcohol strength. Moreover, since the taste and quality is similar no matter where the beer is made from, beers can be easily enjoyed anywhere in the world. It would be the safest choice when one is uncertain what to drink while traveling around. Let's take a closer look at beers, the alcohol for everyone.

The traditional liquors of the East such as China, Korea and Japan are liquors made by saccharizing and fermenting the grains of rice, barley, sorghum and wheat as yeasts, originated from takju, using the yeasts. Now, we will learn more about takju and cheongju, their fermented liquors from the East.

Liquors made by saccharizing, fermenting and distilling malts are called whiskey. How did scotch whiskey, which was only a kind of normal soju with raw taste and spicy scent become a liquor of best quality these days? This session is for whiskeys.

Cognac is the name of a region located in France, but as the brandy made in that region is so famous, people began calling brandy as cognac. Now, let's learn more about brandy, the liquor with a nickname of "burnt wine" because it is made by distilling wines.

Since vodka refers to the crude liquid made through distillers without any ripening process as ordinary hard liquors, its color is transparent and is a colorless, flavorless and scentless liquor because it is filtered using activated carbon. Thus, it is not only drunk neat but also loved as the base for other cocktails and mixed rinks. This time, we explore the world of vodkas, the representative liquor of Russia that ranks world's first in consumption.

Liqueur refers to the liquor designed to be easily enjoyed by distilling wine and adding ingredients such as fruits and herbs along with sweets suc has sugar and honey. The ingredients and the flavor of liqueur accelerate the digestion process, thus perfect to be drunk after meals or before sleeping. Let's learn more about liqueur, the sweet alcohol.

Chinese people have loved alcohol since the ancient times, presenting numerous kinds of famous liquors in China. Among them, baiju, the representative hard liquor of China, is remembered as the beverage which supported the morales during the Long March in the 1930s of the Chinese communist party led by Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai and has greatly developed with modern China.

When whiskey, brandy and vodka are the first generation of hard liquors, there are also hard liquors which were born after the 17th century and have grown with the discovery of the New World, such as gin, rum and tequila. These are considered as one type of hard liquors all together in Korea because their preferences are still low, but they are popular liquors with independence when considered globally. Let's take a closer look at gin, rum and tequila.