Discovering Korea’s Surprising Wines and Spirits
Korea is well known for its kimchi, Korean barbecue, K-drama, K-pop, soju, milky makgeolli and beer, but no one ever mentions wine. Why not?
South Korea has similar latitudes as France in the northern hemisphere and New Zealand in the southern hemisphere. Still, their harsh cold winters and humid, warm summers are not considered conducive to quality wine production. So imagine my delight as an avid wine lover of French heritage when I discovered Chateau Mani, a 20 minutes train ride from Daejeon where I was staying.
Noting that Koreans have a worldwide reputation of being bigger alcohol drinkers than the Russians, I had earlier researched what I could drink — and there was a long list to at least try. While wine is available, it is limited, and like in most Asian countries, it is imported from Australia, New Zealand, France, Italy and Chile.
On arrival, I was lucky to find some excellent wines in the convenience store on the ground floor of my hotel in Seoul, so I had a couple of bottles with me before heading to Daejeon.
I’m usually game to at least try things once, that’s part of really experiencing a country’s culture and lifestyle. In Seoul, I sampled makgeolli, Korea’s original alcoholic drink. A sweet, tangy, thick milky rice-based wine it is enjoyed with Korean savoury pancakes. While palatable, it’s sweet, lightly sparkling milkiness made my stomach turn after the first glass.
It apparently comes in various flavours, but one try of makgeolli was enough. It was off my list. So was its unfiltered cousin, dongdongju, which still has rice particles in it! If you do happen to enjoy either, be careful because both have an alcohol content of around eight percent.
I’ve never been a beer drinker, and I always tell people the only drink I enjoy with bubbles is French Champagne, so all the beer bars and cheap meals offered with free beer were out for me too. Although those who enjoy beer assured me Korean beers are tasty even if much lighter than most other beers. The popular brands include Oriental Brewery, Hite, and Cass, all available at the corner store as well.
When I tried soju, I was pleasantly surprised and could understand why it is the world’s most widely consumed spirit alcohol. I was also relieved I wouldn’t be relegated to becoming a teetotaller during my six weeks in South Korea.
Don’t be fooled that soju is like Japanese sake. It’s not. Plus, soju has been around much longer too. Soju is clear like gin or vodka without the harsh kickback (for me anyway). It’s slightly sweet, but not sickly and served cold. It’s ideal for shooting, sipping, sub or mixing in cocktails. I preferred to sip mine from a wine glass and found it easily enjoyable, especially at little more than US$1 per 360ml bottle from the local convenience store. You also get 100 won back on the empty bottles. However, I found one bottle a night ample with its 13 percent alcohol proof (there’s also a 24 percent version for cocktail mixing). It was a great accompaniment for most local Korean foods. But when I was back home in Australia I was disappointed to discover that the price there was AU$12 a bottle for a minimum purchase of 24 bottles from the liquor store.
If you find soju a little heavy, then try its sweeter, milder, lighter, twice-fermented clear liquor relative, cheongju. But beware, production does vary between regions, and so does the taste!
If you like sweet dessert wines, then maesilju is the Korean drink for you. Made from green plums and fermented with brown sugar, its extra sweetness doesn’t pair particularly well with Korean food, but it is an alternative to having dessert. The 14 percent alcohol content will have you also either partying or sleeping well!
I sampled lesser-known bokbunjaju at my Korean cooking class. Made from blackberries, it pairs surprisingly wonderfully with seafood, especially the live octopus we’d bought at the markets for the class! I’m told bokbunjaju is a huge hit with males for its purported aphrodisiac and testosterone-producing qualities too.
I discovered many Korean drinks were being marketed as health or medicinal alcohol like sansachun, which for more than 400 years has supposedly relieved stress and calmed and soothed the nerves. (Doesn’t enjoying any alcohol have that effect?) Sansachun is a popular pre-dinner drink as it also stimulates the appetite. Like many Korean beverages, it is made from table fruits, and it’s the hawthorn berry that gives it a sourish taste.
Although not to my liking, I had to admit Sansachun and the various other flower wines (from chrysanthemum, azalea, mulberry and peach) I tried were streets ahead of the ‘healthy’ onion wine offered to me at Wine Korea that I found myself quickly spitting out much to the owner’s wife’s amusement. She also admitted not to like it. I’d rather die drinking excess good wine than a mouthful of onion wine!
This now brings me to Korea’s only actual winery, Wine Korea. Established in 1995 by Mr Byeong-Tae Yoon, just 10 minutes drive from Yeongdong in central South Korea, Mr Yoon learnt the viticulture secrets from the Italian and French, and with the downturn in agriculture around the region in the 2000s he involved the support of neighbouring farmers and formed a massive cooperative known as Wine Korea.
Today, Wine Korea and its Chateau Mani label is Korea’s sole grape winery. All produce is grown in the region, harvested, bottled and stored at Chateau Mani’s underground cellars in French Oak barrels. The entire operation is managed and operated by Yoon’s family at a massive French-styled chateau surrounded by majestic gardens below Manisan mountain. Hence the Chateau Mani name. Inside there’s an extensive bar, gallery, gift shop, restaurant, wine foot spa area and the cellars.
While Wine Korea tries to emulate everything French, their Chateau Mani wines aren’t anything like them or the output of other major world wine regions. Created from the local Thompson and Campbell table grapes, they are known as Rare White and Rare Red Blends.
Their uniqueness occurs during fermentation in the French Oak barrels, making them the ideal accompaniment to spicy Korean food. Locally Chateau Mani wines are winning awards, but they have a long way to go to be a major world player.
Created from a blend of seedless Thompson and Italian Sauvignon grapes and aged over six years, the Cult Dry White is fresh with intense lemon/lime crispness. It makes an ideal aperitif or paired with salad, fish and seafood.
Barrel-aged over four years, the Cult Dry Red is blended from MBA produce, resulting in a light Tempranillo styled medium-bodied dry red. The exotic mix of flowers and wild berries makes it ideal for drinking with meaty pasta and beef dishes or cheese.
The full-bodied, fruity aromas of the Sweet Red is created from the surrounding native Campbell grapes and aged over four years. While it is cloudy in the glass, this doesn’t affect the sweet, soothing palette it produces. However, it’s not too sweet, making it the perfect accompaniment for traditional spicy Korean meals.
Chateau Mani’s Ice Wine isn’t like most sweet ice wines either. Created from blended Italian Sauvignon and the local seedless Thompson grapes it is much lighter but doesn’t disappoint. Its freshness makes it ideal with Korean sweet treats after dinner or an aperitif.
But as I mentioned earlier, if you enjoy life, stay away from their onion wine, despite what the locals say!
If you’re planning on only visiting Seoul, you can still enjoy a day at Chateau Mani by taking the Korail and Lotte Cinema befittingly decorated and themed Wine and Cinema Train. Operating since 2006, the 150 minutes unique wine-tasting journey to Yeongdong Station and 10 minutes bus ride to the winery transports over 100 visitors on each journey. Afterwards, enjoy a few cultural experiences around the town before the trip back to Seoul.
Visitors can also partake in two annual festivals: the grape harvest in mid-August and wine festival in October. Wine Korea/Chateau Mani is open Tuesday to Saturday all year. The Wine Train Tour departs Seoul Station every Tuesday and Saturday and costs 96,000 won per person, which includes all wine, food, wine foot spa, transportation and cultural experiences.
So, if you like your wine, like me, you won’t be disappointed and maybe even pleasantly surprised at what you find in South Korea.
Header image: © Daisuke Morita
