During many years of eating kimchi in both the ROK and here in Japan I have eaten at least 30 to 40 different types of kimchi more than a few times each of those and then probably a hundred different styles at least once. I am afraid I have a forgiving taste system and found all to be just fine, except sometimes some were excessively spicy. Unfortunately, by medical necessity, my kimchi eating days are pretty much over. I cheat once in a blue moon.
Do either of you use the winter months and the proper kind of pots stored in the ground to age your kimchi? Maybe "age" is the wrong vocabulary. Whatever that long creation process is called after you carefully layer the ingredients into the pot. I've watched many mama-sans doing it many years ago. And a famous fish pond fella in Hachioji City used to do the same and made great kimchi.
But I suspect the styles of kimchis out there are way into the hundreds. In fact, kimchi is a sort of catch-all vocabulary like alcohol is when referring to the dongdong-ju that goes great with kimchi. Or all those other alcohol drinks. If you've had dongdong-ju then you have really hit the nail on the head when it comes to fine Korean alcohol.
Before makoli was legal we used to buy it in plastic containers that were sort of like bags. Soju was unreliable for alcohol strength in those days, too. Major Kim, who I worked for, used to pour a little on the table at the KATUSA snack bar and light a match to it before he would actually pay for it. Being who his family was they never gave him a hard time about soju that was opened and not paid for. Actually, a major in the ROK Army was normally not allowed to go into a KATUSA snack bar, but he was very special. And I mean way up there on that very strict social ladder that I think still exists in the ROK. Sorry, drifted off-topic like a professional jiji.
Many KATUSA snack bars made their own kimchi right there on the U.S. military facilities and the U.S. military food inspectors didn't bother them.
