page_title: Beer in South Korea
section_title: Notable beers
hierarchical_section_title: Beer in South Korea / Domestic brands / Notable beers
caption_attribution_description: English: Beer brand Hite extra cold
context_page_description: Beer, called maekju in Korean, was first introduced to Korea in the early 20th century. Seoul's first beer brewery opened in 1908. Two current major breweries date back to the 1930s. The third brewery established in Korea, Jinro Coors Brewery, was founded in the 1990s. It was later acquired by Oriental Breweries. Hite Breweries's former name was Chosun Breweries, which was established in 1933. The company changed their name to Hite Breweries in 1998. OB Breweries established as Showa Kirin Breweries in 1933. The company changed their name to OB Breweries in 1995.
  The South Korean beer market is currently dominated by two major manufacturers, Hite-Jinro and OB, with several brands being sold in the local market. Most restaurants and bars in Korea only have one of these beer brands on tap, as they are largely regarded to be similar in taste and price. Imported beers are largely available in Korea, but are generally expensive - usually costing at least ₩8,000 and as much as ₩15,000 for a pint of Guinness in bars in downtown Seoul, versus approximately ₩3,000 for local brands. Recently, microbreweries have sprouted up throughout the country, showing increasing signs of sophistication.
context_section_description: HiteJinro
  Hite: A pale lager beer launched in 1993. Hite is 4.3% abv.
  Max: Launched in 2006 as the first all malt Korean beer. A special edition of Max beer is made annually. Max is 4.5% abv.
  Dry D: Launched as a dry type beer in 2010. The brewing method was made in cooperation with the Danish brewing company, Danbrew. It is made using a select dry yeast. Dry D is 4.8% abv.
  S: A low calorie beer produced by super attenuated brewing. It contains 0.5g of fiber per 100ml. S is 3.8% abv.
  Stout: A dark beer launched in 1991. It is a lager-type black beer made with German black malt. Stout is 5% abv.
  Lager Beer: Made from malt and German hops. Lager Beer is 5% abv.
  Prime Draft: Sold in regular and Green. Regular is 5% abv with Green being 4.5% abv.
  J Draft: J Draft is 5% abv.
  Queen's Ale: A pale ale beer top fermented and completed with a triple hopping process. Queen's Ale is 5.4% abv.
   
  Oriental Brewery (OB)
  Cass brands (Cass Fresh, Cass Light, Cass Red, Cass Lemon): There are several different beers for sale under the Cass brand name. Cass is a non-pasteurized lager. At 6.9% abv, Cass Red is the strongest variety currently sold.
  OB Golden Lager: An all malt beer made primarily from Perle hops. OB Golden Lager is 4.8% abv.
  Cafri: Launched as a premium beer by OB in 1995. It is the first Korean beer to have a transparent bottle and a twist-off cap. Cafri is 4.2% abv.
  Aleston: A British style ale sold in a black and brown variety. Aleston Black is 5% abv with Aleston Brown being 5.2% abv.
  Lotte Liquor
  Kloud: An all malt beer launched by Lotte Chilsung in 2014. It is made with German hops and brewed using original gravity. The proportion of hops produced in Germany is over 50% Kloud is 5% abv.
  Korea Craft Brewery
  ARK: Available in Brown, Cony, and Classic. Brown and Classic are 4.3% abv with Cony being 4.5% abv.
  7Bräu
  The Emperor's beer: A top fermented IPA. Its name is a reference to 19th-century British imperialism. The Emperor's beer is 5.5% abv.
  Original golden lager: A bottom fermented pilsner. Original golden lager is 5% abv.
  Black Charisma: A top fermented stout. Black Charisma is 5% abv.
  Glittering tenderness: A top fermented beer made from barley and wheat malt. Glittering tenderness is 4.2% abv.
  Korean Pale Ale: A top fermented IPA with reduced bitterness (IBU). Korean Pale Ale is 4.6% abv.
  Imperial I.P.A.: A high alcohol, top fermented mild-ale. It is produced with a large amount of hops and malt. Imperial I.P.A. is 7% abv.
caption: Hite extra cold
exif: {"Image ImageWidth": "2976", "Image ImageLength": "2976", "Image Make": "samsung", "Image Model": "SM-G920S", "Image Orientation": "Rotated 90 CW", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "G920SKSU3DPH2", "Image DateTime": "2016:10:27 17:24:31", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "226", "Thumbnail ImageWidth": "384", "Thumbnail ImageLength": "384", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail Orientation": "Rotated 90 CW", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "928", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "10476", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/60", "EXIF FNumber": "19/10", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "200", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2016:10:27 17:24:31", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2016:10:27 17:24:31", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "591/100", "EXIF ApertureValue": "37/20", "EXIF BrightnessValue": "46/25", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "37/20", "EXIF MeteringMode": "CenterWeightedAverage", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire", "EXIF FocalLength": "43/10", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2976", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2976", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "28", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "A16LLIC08SM A16LLIL02GM"}