[Gu Eun-mo's Sake Story] Yesan Apple Wine, Dreaming of an 'Irreplaceable' Drink Under the Name 'Chusa'

<6> Chungnam Yesan 'Yesan Apple Wine'①

'Chusa40' Brandy Made from Yesan Apples Enhanced with Oak Barrel Aging
'ChusaBaek' Created to Compete with Diluted Soju... Increasing Accessibility of Distilled Soju
Aiming for a European-Style Winery with Various Cultural and Experiential Elements Beyond a Liquor Factory

Chusa Kim Jeonghui's 'Buliseonrando (不二禪蘭圖)' used on the label of Yesan Apple Wine's 'Chusa 40'

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] “After 20 years of not painting orchid flowers, I unexpectedly depicted the deep sky within my heart. Closing the door and searching deep inside, I realized this is exactly Yuma Hill’s (維摩詰) Non-Dual Zen (不二禪).”

Kim Jeonghui (金正喜), known as Chusa (秋史), a literati of the late Joseon Dynasty, painted an orchid for Daljun, who had been attending him since his exile in Bukcheong in his later years. Very pleased with the painting, Chusa wrote that his orchid painting was excellent like the Zen state of enlightenment silently attained by the Indian sage Yuma Hill, and named it “Non-Dual Zen Orchid Painting (不二禪蘭圖).”

The orchid in the Non-Dual Zen Orchid Painting, which lacks the characteristic curves of orchids and appears rough and fragile, is regarded as an original orchid painting distinct from any previous orchid paintings. Chusa himself said, “There can be only one, but not two,” and evaluated it as “Jigayuil Bugayui (只可有一 不可有二).”

Kim Jeonghui is familiar to us as the person who completed the Chusa style of calligraphy. The Chusa style is an independent script established by Kim Jeonghui after studying the calligraphy styles of Chinese literati and gathering their strengths. Although it started based on Chinese scripts, it did not merely imitate but repeatedly researched and applied to present a unique script never seen before, which is why he and his calligraphy are still highly regarded today.

Apple harvesting is taking place in the apple orchard of Yesan Apple Wine.

Discovering the Potential of Agriculture in Canada... Leading to Winery Establishment

In Yesan, Chungnam, the hometown of Chusa, there is a brewery that dreams of making a unique liquor under Chusa’s name. Although the liquor originated in the West, it is reinterpreted and brewed in our land, using our agricultural products and our own methods?this is “Yesan Apple Wine.”

Yesan Apple Wine opened in 2008, but the story of the winery goes back nearly twenty years. In December 1989, Jeong Jemin, vice president of Yesan Apple Wine and then a university student, emigrated to Canada with his family. What captivated Jeong in the new land was wine and the winery that housed it. Until then, having had few opportunities to drink anything other than Makgeolli and Soju, wine and wineries were literally a cultural shock to him.

Jeong recalled, “There, the winery was not just a liquor factory but a place of the so-called sixth industry, combining agriculture with processing and experiential tourism.” He said, “Seeing beautiful buildings built in vineyards, operating restaurants and experiential tourism, and even serving as community centers for local society, I was amazed and fascinated by how agriculture could transform so wonderfully. I thought I should try farming in this style when I returned to Korea.”

Thirteen years after falling in love with wine, Jeong wrapped up his immigrant life and returned to Korea in 2002. He did not immediately jump into the brewing business upon returning. At first, he ran a business related to immigration and studying abroad in Seoul, set up a wine workshop in a corner of his office, and organized a wine club to make wine as a hobby. During the mulberry and raspberry season, he traveled to Gochang, and during grape season, to Yeongdong, making wine nationwide with club members.

Although those were very enjoyable times, it was regrettable to keep it just as a hobby. Jeong eventually decided to make his own liquor, built a winery building on a side of the apple orchard run by his father-in-law, and started brewing. It was a long-cherished dream since Canada.

He did not initially plan to brew liquor from apples. However, after returning to Korea, suitable grapes for brewing were scarce. Varieties like Campbell and Kyoho, widely grown and consumed in Korea, were not suitable for brewing, and cultivating grapes for brewing was challenging due to climate conditions and the long time needed to grow grapevines and make liquor.

While pondering deeply, what caught Jeong’s eye was the apples farmed by his father-in-law in Yesan. Seo Jeonghak, CEO of Eunseong Farm and Jeong’s father-in-law, settled in Godeok-myeon, Yesan, in 1987 and devoted his life to apple farming. Seo applied a European-style apple orchard system to Eunseong Farm after traveling to places like the Tyrol region in Italy. In the past, Japanese-style apple orchards had branches spreading widely sideways, occupying a large area per tree. However, European-style dense planting arranges rows with wide spacing and trees with narrow spacing, providing even sunlight and facilitating mechanization, resulting in higher yields.

Currently, Eunseong Farm, about 10,000 pyeong in size, produces 35 to 50 tons of apples annually. They use both their own apples and apples purchased from the Yesan region for brewing. Yesan Apple Wine used about 150 tons of apples for brewing last year, and this year the amount nearly doubled to 300 tons. Jeong explained, “The quality standards for apples for fresh consumption and for brewing differ. Apples with strong sourness and astringency are used for brewing, while fully ripe and sweet apples are sold for fresh consumption.”

Atmospheric multi-stage copper still used for distilling 'Chusa 40'

Apple Distilled Spirit ‘Chusa 40’ with Subtle Apple Aroma and Deep Oak Scent

‘Chusa 40’ is the flagship product of Yesan Apple Wine. Chusa 40 is an apple brandy similar to Calvados from Normandy, France, named Chusa to embody the story and taste of autumn apples representing the season. Using Yesan apples from Chusa Kim Jeonghui’s hometown was also a reason for choosing the name Chusa. The painting on the Chusa 40 bottle label is also Kim Jeonghui’s Non-Dual Zen Orchid Painting.

Chusa 40 is made by fermenting juice extracted from 100% apples, then distilled with a multi-stage copper pot still, and aged in oak barrels. It contains various apple varieties harvested in Yesan, including Busa, Hongro, Gamhong, and Arisu. Jeong explained, “Apple brandies, including Calvados, are made by blending multiple apple varieties for complex aroma and flavor.”

Selected high-quality apples are cleaned, crushed, and juiced. The juice is fermented with yeast to produce a raw wine with about 7-8% alcohol content, which is then distilled through a multi-stage copper pot still under atmospheric pressure. Jeong said, “Usually, Cognac or whiskey is distilled twice with a single-stage copper pot still under atmospheric pressure, but we use a tall multi-stage still to extract high-concentration alcohol in a single distillation. When juicing one ton of apples to make wine, about 700 liters are produced, and after distillation, about 70 liters of distilled spirit remain.”

The distilled spirit obtained by atmospheric distillation is refined in oak barrels to enhance flavor and aroma, then diluted with purified water to 40 degrees alcohol content, aged again for about two months, bottled, and sold. Chusa 40 uses French reconditioned oak barrels made in Portugal and is sold by blending spirits aged 1 to 3 years. Jeong said, “Since we are still in a growth phase, it is challenging to supply 3-year aged spirits, but if growth continues and production increases, we will naturally introduce high-aged products and cask strength products.”

Alongside Chusa 40, the liquor supporting Yesan Apple Wine is ‘Chusa Baek.’ Adding the character for white (白) to Chusa, Chusa Baek differs from Chusa 40, which is amber-colored due to oak barrel aging, by being clear and transparent after about three months of aging in stainless steel tanks. Unlike Chusa 40, which is distilled under atmospheric pressure, Chusa Baek is distilled under vacuum at 55 degrees. Atmospheric distillation extracts strong raw material flavors but is relatively rough and requires long aging. Vacuum distillation, done at low temperature without aging, produces a smooth and clean taste.

Jeong emphasized that Chusa Baek is an important liquor in terms of price. He said, “Chusa Baek was planned as a popular product without using ethanol and sweeteners to compete with diluted soju. We set the price relatively low so that young consumers can easily experience the advantages of distilled soju.”

Oak barrel storing the original liquid of apple brandy 'Chusa40'.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.