Jo Ok-hwa, the 20th Korean master of the traditional
food and the only holder of the Andong-Soju manufacturing
know-how, began a movement for the emancipation of women
at the end of 1940.
She launched a enlightenment drive for women by teaching
lessons in flower arrangement in the 1960's. Besides doing
this, she also comforted soldiers by pickling vegetables
for the winter and taking care of their clothes, and also,
set up the first nongovernmental women's hall.
She decided to make the native local spirit in 1883. She
restored the Andong-Soju which was carried by prestigious
families in Andong, and Andong-Soju was designated as
an intangible cultural asset by the Gyeongsangbuk provincial
authorities on the 13th of may in 1987. Ms. Jo sorted
out the best method of home-brewing between the methods
that she learned from her husband's family and her own
family, her manufacturing was successful with a lot of
people who give a favorable reception to her spirits.
