Korean beer

Korean beer.

It's not like normal beer that millions of people enjoy round the world. Korean beer is a special brand of torture reserved for those who like complimentary fruitloop flavored popcorn and a side of kimchi. I have never heard anyone say that they enjoy the taste of Korean beer, but its cheap and foreigners aren't too picky. Most nights when a teacher is looking for something to take the edge off a long work day, we settle in to a tall frothy mug of maekju, which comes in a number of brands--Cass, Hite, and OB are the favorites, though there are a few more. Now, I am not nor will I ever espouse to be a beer connoisseur. I'll drink it, sure, but I have no opinion about brands or styles. I can't tell an ale from a lager, I have no preference between an IPA and a stout, but I can tell the difference between a decently brewed beer and piss water. Unfortunately, Korea only seems to mass produce the later.

As I am not overly fond of beer myself, this hasn't really been a problem for me. One Korean beer basically tastes the same as another here, so when my coworkers and I hit up the local bar after work, I usually just end up with a Cass when everyone else is arguing about prices and tastes. Sometimes, if I'm feeling really fancy, I'll spring for a Hoegaarden or even a Heineken. But according to the people around me, Korean beer is the worst thing to happen to the world since Hitler (a bit of an exaggeration, I think, but then again I didn't grow up in a microbrewery town).

Cheap domestics are the same here as anywhere; they are definitely the most widely available, but they are not the only option. You can always pay more and get a decent beer, some of which are even made in Korea. There are more microbreweries opening every year, but due to the law that states that a company must have 30 billion won capital to sell commercially, you can't get most of these brews on the shelves. Also, to be fair to the beer here, its definitely not the worst thing I've ever had to drink. I would liken it to a number of cheap domestics in the states, but to put things in perspective for you, in Korea, Budweiser is considered to be a higher end beer. There just seems to be something wrong with that.