The parliamentary democracy Korea, colloquially known as South Korea (Korean 대한민국, Daehan Minguk) with its capital Seoul in East Asia covers 100,210 km². It occupies the southern part of the Korean Peninsula. In the north, the Military Demarcation Line forms the de facto border with North Korea. The division of the country began after the Second World War with the division of Korea into a US and a Soviet occupation zone, from which two independent states emerged in 1948. The Korean War (1950 to 1953) sealed the division of the Korean peninsula.
Viticulture
South Korea lies in the temperate climate zone with four distinct seasons. However, the winters are extremely cold and in summer there is a lot of rain with high humidity and therefore a high risk of fungal diseases such as both types of mildew. Traditionally, rice wine and beer are the main beverages consumed here. As a result of poor rice harvests in the 1960s, people also began to look into viticulture and experimented with European grape varieties. The most popular brand of wine is "Majuang", which means "you savour it while looking at it directly" .
Since the 1970s, various wines have been produced by a winery in Gyeongsan (in Gyeongsangbuk-do province in the east of the country). Local grape must is supplemented with concentrated grape must imported from France (Médoc, labelled as Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay), Germany (Mosel, for example Riesling), Italy (Piedmont) and the USA, as well as Seibel grapes and Muscat d'Hamburg. In 2021, the vineyards covered 14,350 hectares of vines and the wine production volume was 655,000 hectolitres. For the most part, however, table grapes from Campbell Early are produced. The grape variety chart (Kym Anderson):
Map: © Goruma
Flag: by Various - Public domain, Link
Coat of arms: by Ksiom - Own work by Ksiom, Public domain, Link
Majuang: Korea.net
