Munbaeju

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Munbaeju

Hangul	문배주
Hanja	문배酒
Revised Romanization	Munbaeju
McCune-Reischauer	Munpaechu

Munbaeju is a traditional distilled liquor produced in South Korea and is considered to be one of the finest Korean spirits. The word munbae (문배) in munbaeju means "wild pear" and ju (주; 酒) means "alcohol^[1]." It is given this name because the wine has a fruity scent of a wild pear, although no pear is used in its production.

1 Ingredients and production
2 Origins
3 References
4 External links
5 See also

[edit] Ingredients and production

Munbaeju is brewed from wheat, hulled millet, Indian millet, and a fermentation starter (nuruk; 누룩), then distilled.

[edit] Origins

Although it is South Korea's "Important Intangible Cultural Property Number 86-1", it originated from North Korea's Pyeongyang. Its origins are traced to the Goryeo Dynasty. The water used to produce Munbaeju comes form the Taedong River. A royal subject of Wang Geon presented him with home-brewed munbaeju, which his family had made with a secret recipe for generations. Wang Geon was so impressed with its taste, that he gave the subject a high-ranking position in the government. Ever since this event, Munbaeju was a wine drunk by kings, and is commonly served to important foreign dignitaries during welcoming receptions.^[2]