Chunpoong Brewery Seoul: The Ultimate Makgeolli Tour Experience

If your only experience with makgeolli involves a plastic bottle from a convenience store at 2 AM or seeing it on K-dramas… respectfully, we need to change that immediately.

Tucked away in Jung-gu near Yaksu Station, Chunpoong Brewery (춘풍양조장) is one of the most interesting traditional alcohol experiences you can have in Seoul right now. Part brewery, part history lesson and part tasting experience, Chunpoong is helping introduce a new generation of people to Korean makgeolli but with a surprisingly modern twist.

Chunpoong Brewery is a modern makgeolli brewery in central Seoul specializing in premium traditional Korean rice wine. However, the brewery actually traces its roots back to its sister Beonam Brewery, a historic brewing operation founded in 1919 in Jangsu, Jeollabuk-do. Chunpoong combines those century-old brewing techniques with modern fermentation technology and AI-assisted brewing systems that have actually been fed key information and recipes from brewing masters all over Korea. Which sounds extremely futuristic for a drink that has existed in Korea for thousands of years. But somehow… it works.

Now this is honestly one of the coolest tours I’ve been on. Instead of just sitting down for drinks, and being “sold” on the brand, you actually get a full introduction to Korean brewing culture and the fermentation process behind makgeolli. This includes a guided walkthrough of the brewery, viewing the fermentation tanks, a rundown on the history of makgeolli and special access to an exhibition space that is made to make you feel like you’re inside a fermentation tank.

And of course there is the tasting session with food pairings where you get to try 3 different kinds of makgeolli. Even the tasing bar is purposefully curated with Korean culture, using hanji paper for the walls, candles for the lighting and the sounds of fermentation instead of k-pop. Everything is created not just to give you a taste of the history of makgeolli, but to immerse you in it. To really show how deeply rooted it is in the culture, so much so that for 2,000 years every household had it own makgeolli family recipe. How cool is that?

Historically, Japanese occupation brought about a ban on homebrewed makgeolli. And after liberation, the government controlled the price and ingredients used to make makgeolli, which was oftentimes not even made with rice. And over time it became known as kind of a cheap drink. So now, many makgeolli breweries are trying to bring it back to its former glory. Not the sweet, fizzy makgeolli most people expect, but something carefully crafted, almost wine-like makgeolli designed to showcase just how complex Korean fermentation can be.

I can say with complete confidence, this makgeolli is chef’s kiss. It’s smooth with a light natural sweetness that tastes amazing with some savory jeon (korean pancakes). Take it all in on a rainy day and you have the ultimate cultural experience. There are plenty of drinking experiences in Seoul, but Chunpoong feels genuinely educational and thoughtfully curated rather than gimmicky. Tours are available in English and typically last around 90 minutes to 2 hours. So if you want to add this to your next Korea itinerary you can book though Creatrip and check it out.

• Chunpoong Brewery – 춘풍양조장 (Naver Map, Google Maps)