Five Intangible Cultural Heritage Certificates
Kim Won Bom and Hwang Kyong Suk, an old couple, living in Puksong-dong No. 2, Phyongchon District of Pyongyang have registered five traditional techniques of distillation including those of Kamhongro and Riganggo on the list of intangible cultural heritage.
In his youthful days, he went to a foreign country for external affairs, when he happened to read literature on famous traditional liquor of that country. At that time he remembered that Korean ancestors, too, had long developed distilling techniques.
Whenever he was free, he visited the Grand People's Study House and different other places to search materials recorded in the old literature on traditional liquor. In the course, he came to know that the intelligent and resourceful ancestors invented peculiar medical wine by combining different kinds of Koryo medicinal materials.
Kamhongro, a special product of Pyongyang, had a lot of medicinal ingredients for purifying of blood, removal of fever, detoxication and alleviation of pain. It also removed the negative effect of liquor on heart and liver.
After he retired on a pension, Kim Won Bom buckled down to finding out the techniques of distilling traditional liquors together with his wife.
Of course, they had a certain understanding of the techniques in the course of studying literature recorded in ancient books for years. But it was not easy to find out the mysteries of distillation.
They had no knowledge of foodstuff industry and experience related to it at all. Worse still, they were not provided with good conditions.
They made an analysis of water along the layers of rugged mountain gorges so as to learn about its constituent parts and toured different parts of the country to get old terra-cotta jars suited to maturing traditional liquor.
The old couple did not mind any hardship to find out more cultural heritage. Their pure minds and sincere efforts bore precious results.
It is said that the traditional liquors they made have peculiar flavour and aroma and medicinal ingredients combined harmoniously and those who tasted them lavish praises on them, saying they are treasure ones.
Hwang Kyong Suk said with deep emotion that they could not sleep whenever seeing the increasing number of certificates of intangible cultural heritage, and continued:
"As a song sings, ours has been called a country with good mountains and clear water since ancient times.
Very often we sang the song 'Our Beautiful Country' from our childhood. Really good is the flavour of the liquor made with the clear water.
What we found out, made and kept should be turned on modern lines according to the present times. In this way we should carry forward and develop the good qualities of the Korean nation generation after generation and glorify them all over the world. This is my simple feeling."
The distilling techniques of the old couple are carried forward by their off-springs.