Taedonggang facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Type	Lager
Manufacturer	Taedonggang Brewing Company
Country of origin	North Korea
Introduced	2002
Alcohol by volume	5%
Colour	Golden orange
Flavour	"full-bodied lager a little on the sweet side, with a slightly bitter aftertaste"
Ingredients	Water, barley, rice, hops

Taedonggang is a popular brand of beer from North Korea. It is made by the state-owned Taedonggang Brewing Company in Pyongyang. There are actually four types of beer sold under the Taedonggang name. This article mainly talks about the one simply called "Taedonggang Beer."

How Taedonggang Beer Started

A bottle and glass of Taedonggang beer

In the year 2000, the North Korean government decided to buy a brewery. They had good connections with countries like Germany at that time. North Korea bought a complete brewery plant from a closed company in England. It cost about £1.5 million.

Some people were worried the equipment might be used for other things. But after getting reassurances, the deal went through. A team from North Korea traveled to England to take the brewery apart. It was then moved and set up in North Korea.

The brewery started working in 2002. It uses modern, computer-controlled brewing technology from Germany. Since then, North Korea has had a steady supply of this beer.

A Rare TV Commercial

On July 3, 2009, something unusual happened. A commercial for Taedonggang beer was shown on North Korea's state TV channel. This was very rare because there are almost no advertisements on their television.

The commercial showed people tasting the beer. It also showed beer bottles floating in space. Foam shot out from the bottles, looking a bit like a rocket launch. This commercial was shown three times in total.

Since 2016, a small amount of Taedonggang beer has also been sold in China.

What Taedonggang Beer is Like

People have different opinions about the taste of Taedonggang beer. The most common type is a Pilsner-style lager. The New York Times described it as a "full-bodied lager." They also said it was "a little sweet, with a slightly bitter taste afterward." They called it "one of the highest quality beers" on the Korean peninsula.

However, a reporter from the BBC News had a different view in 2016. He said it was "an OK beer, a bit bland." He felt it was too much like "mass-produced American beer."

There is also a brown ale version of Taedonggang. A review from Finland said it has 5% alcohol. It tasted much more bitter than most other beers from Asia. Taedonggang lager is said to be similar to British ale.

Where the Name and Ingredients Come From

The beer gets its name from the Taedong River. This river flows right through the middle of Pyongyang, the capital city.

The water used to make the beer comes from the upper part of the Taedong River. The barley and rice come from South Hwanghae Province. The hops, which give beer its bitter taste, come from Ryanggang Province.

Taedonggang beer has also received special quality certifications. These include ISO 9001, ISO 22000, and HACCP. This means it meets high international standards for quality and safety.

Different Kinds of Taedonggang Beer

Taedonggang beers are grouped by how much malt they contain. They are numbered from "1" to "7."

• Type "1" is made mostly from pure malt.
• Types "2" through "5" have more rice and less malt as the number gets higher. Type "5" is made mostly from pure rice.
• Types "6" and "7" are both Schwarzbier, which is a dark beer. Type "6" has a bit more malt than type "7."

Also, the Taedonggang beer types "1" and "2" that are sold in China are 500ml bottles. The ones sold in North Korea are 600ml. They also have different package designs.

Where You Can Find Taedonggang Beer

Taedonggang beer is mainly made for people living in North Korea. However, it was also sold in South Korea for a few years. This happened during a time when relations between the two countries were better.

Limited amounts of the beer started being sold in South Korea in 2005. It was brought in by a company called Vintage Korea in Seoul.

But by mid-2007, it became harder to find Taedonggang beer in South Korea. It is now believed that it is no longer imported there. This happened after the brewery suddenly raised its price by 70%.

People who live in North Korea say that Taedonggang is the most popular beer brand. It is widely served in restaurants and bars. Hotels in Pyongyang that welcome foreign visitors also sell it. A small bottle there costs about 0.5 euro.

See also

In Spanish: Taedonggang para niños