Starting the article

The History of Alcohol and the Making of Nuruk

How to make alcohol

A brief history of alcohol on the Korean Peninsula, from the Three Kingdoms period to the end of the Goryeo Dynasty.

The friendship between Jeong Mong-ju and Jeong Do-jeon, and chrysanthemum wine

September 9th, Drinkers Drink Chrysanthemum Wine | Five Ways to Make Chrysanthemum Wine | Drinking Alone: ​​A Lonely Drink

Wine, a unique pleasure for gourmets

Wine Drank by Yi Saek | Liquor Imported from the Yuan Dynasty | Yi Saek's Feast | Wine Lover Seo Geo-jeong

Kwon Hee-dal, a drinker who decorated the early Joseon Dynasty

The Meaning of Posthumous Names | Posthumous Names Given to Drunkards

King Sejo of the Drunken Age

The Reign of Alcohol | A drunkard who causes accidents even when sober | The true nature of drunkenness

Ihwaju, the liquor that made King Seongjong forget his worries

The liquor King Seongjong sent to his brother | How to make Ihwaju | The sorrow of a jar of Ihwaju | Another person who loved Ihwaju

Makgeolli, loved by both tyrants and peasants

The Makgeolli Loved by Farmers | The Makgeolli Loved by Kings | How to Make Makgeolli | The Love of Makgeolli | The Modern Story of Makgeolli

King Yeonsangun, the tyrant who encouraged drinking

A tyrant who offered alcohol to his subjects

Gamhongro, the red liquor that King Yeongjo hated

Fine Red Liquor | What's the Best Hongroju? | Hongroju Ban | How to Make Hongroju | People Who Enjoyed Hongroju

Ant-infested liquor, Dongdongju

A History of Wealth | The Making of Wealth

How can soju be banned?

Soju, a Symbol of Luxury | Making Soju | A Strong and Dangerous Alcoholic Beverage

Those who made bowls by increasing the size of silver cups

Instead of disobeying the king's orders, increase the number of glasses of wine | Reincarnation | Son Sun-hyo | Jeong Cheol

The gene of a heavy drinker, Odoyle

A person who influenced his time with his writing skills and drinking ability

Samhaeju, the liquor that King Jeongjo treasured

Jeongjo's Family History | The Boss Who Pimped Him | How to Make Samhaeju | Samhaeju: A Drink Anytime? | Jeongjo's Drinking Habits

Truly the King's Wine, Hyangon and Beopon

Hyangon Full of Regret | How to Make Hyangon | Palace Banquets and the King's Grace

Americano, Bangmunju or Baekhaju from the Joseon Dynasty

Bangmunju or Baekhaju | How to Make Bangmunju | Tavern Street and Bangmunju

Let's try making soju in the Joseon Dynasty.

The History of Beer | Beer Enthusiast Seo Geo-jeong

After drinking alcohol, you have a hangover.

What is a hangover cure? | There is also hangover cure alcohol | Food eaten to cure a hangover

In closing
References

The history of alcohol, the history of mankind

Since ancient times, alcohol has been a part of human history and culture.
Jesus Christ said that the wine in the cup was his blood, and Noah's drunkenness while building the ark in the Genesis flood story is also recorded in the Bible.
Emperor Yu of the Xia Dynasty in China declared abstinence from alcohol after tasting it, and King Zhou of the Shang Dynasty's practice of drinking six kinds of meat is also a representative metaphor for extravagance and debauchery.
Traces of people drinking alcohol can be found in the graffiti left on the Egyptian pyramids and in the oracle bone inscriptions discovered in the Yin Ruins.
What about our country?
Alcohol also appears in the meeting between Yuhwa, the mother of King Dongmyeong, and Haemosu, and the character for 'alcohol' (酒) is written on the dice juryunggu (酒令具), a game toy from the Silla period.
A book about Goryeo written by a Song Dynasty person also contains information about the taste of Goryeo alcohol.
There is no need to mention the rich records of the Joseon Dynasty.
In this way, the liquor that has been brewed and consumed throughout mythical and historical times is recorded in various records and passed down to this day.


History of traditional Korean liquor

This book features several traditional liquors that captivated the senses of people from all walks of life during the Joseon Dynasty.
There are many types of alcohol, from unfamiliar ones you may have never heard of before, such as chrysanthemum wine, grape wine, ihwaju, gamhongro, dongdongju, soju, makgeolli, samhaeju, hyangon, and bangmunju, to those that are still familiar today.
From kings to subjects, from nobles to commoners and even slaves, these drinks were enjoyed by people of all social classes. Who drank them, what kind of drinks, how, and in what quantities? Just as intriguing as the types of alcohol and the people who enjoyed them are the methods of making them and the drinking culture itself.


To resolve various curiosities related to alcohol, the author has searched through various records related to alcohol, including the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty and the History of Goryeo, as well as the anthologies of many great figures that decorate a page of our history, classics with clearly identified compilers and books with unknown authors.
In addition to the representative cookbooks that remain to this day, such as 《Sangayorok》, 《Eumsikdimibang》, 《Joseonmusangsinsikyorijebeop》, 《Suunjapbang》, as well as various encyclopedias, medical books, agricultural books, and personal collections, such as 《Jibongyuseol》, 《Sanrimgyeongje》, 《Chisengyoram》, 《Gosasipijip》, 《Imwonsipyukji》, 《Seonghosaeseol》, 《Pilwonjapgi》, and 《Donguibogam》, it introduces not only various cooking methods but also the drinking culture of the time, including the production sites and sales locations of alcohol, and even hangover prevention culture.


A dark history of repeated drunkenness

This book first introduces the history of alcohol.
We will briefly look at how alcohol was first consumed, the general method of making alcohol, and the history of alcohol on the Korean Peninsula.
And it tells the story of the various traditional liquors of the Joseon Dynasty and the countless people who drank them, along with the methods of making them.


We first meet various characters who unfold over alcohol, including the breakup between Jeong Mong-ju and Jeong Do-jeon, friends of the late Goryeo Dynasty who built their friendship over chrysanthemum wine, the story of Seo Geo-jeong enjoying wine imported from the Yuan Dynasty, and the story of the posthumous title of Kwon Hee-dal, a drunkard who was a meritorious retainer of King Taejo and a close associate of King Taejong.
Next, we introduce kings who either forced their subjects to drink alcohol without permission, or encouraged or forbade them to drink alcohol out of necessity.
Representative examples include King Sejo, King Seongjong, King Yeonsangun, King Jeongjo, and King Yeongjo. What kind of alcohol did each of them serve and how did they consume it? It also introduces makgeolli, dongdongju, and soju, beloved by all social classes, as well as hyangon, the king's drink, and even includes anecdotes about famous heavy drinkers.

The Joseon Dynasty is full of anecdotes related to alcohol, and various methods of making these alcohols are recorded to this day.
Through the various methods of making alcohol, which are similar yet different, easy yet difficult, we can get a glimpse of how much the people of the time cared about alcohol and how much effort they put into making it delicious.

Furthermore, this book, “Joseon in a Glass of Alcohol,” examines the harm alcohol has inflicted on society through various incidents and accidents that occurred due to alcohol.
The 'dark history' of long-standing and repetitive drinking habits and drunkenness allows us to look back on the drinking culture of our society today.