Beer in China

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

See also:
Chinese alcoholic beverages
Beer in China
Hanyu Pinyin
Zhōngguó píjiǔ

Beer in China first was brewed in 7000 BC, and remained the dominant alcoholic beverage through the

Han Dynasty, after which it was eclipsed by the production of rice wine. Modern brewing first appeared in the late 1800s, brought to China by Europeans who brewed in its style of pale lager, such as Tsingtao. Both beer production and consumption of local and imported brands grew increasingly popular in the 20th century. In the 21st century China became the world's largest consumer of beer, commercial scale brewing expanded, and craft beers
began to spread beyond ex-patriot communities and commercial centers and make inroads among the Chinese population.

History

Production and consumption of

Han Dynasty, Chinese beer faded from prominence in favor of huangjiu
, which remained the case for the next two millennia.

Pale lager

Modern beer

China Resources Enterprises.[3]

Craft beer

The emergence of craft beer in China started in the large metro areas including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.[4] Once primarily of interest to expat drinkers, local consumer interest in premium brands and local and imported craft beers is currently on the rise.[5][6][7] However, Chinese government regulations have been cited as an obstacle facing new breweries or those wishing to expand bottling distribution.[8]

Ingredients

Chinese beers often contain

bitter melon instead of hops as the bittering agent
.

Chinese media reported in 2001 that as many as 95% of all Chinese beers contained formaldehyde, to prevent sedimentation in bottles and cans while in storage.[9] This practice has now been made illegal.[citation needed]

Economy

Chinese Tsingtao beer

Despite the fact that estimates say between one-third to half of East Asian people, including Chinese people, have Asian flush syndrome, which influences the ability to process alcohol,[10][11] China is deemed the world's largest beer market in terms of global consumption, followed by the United States and Brazil.[12][13]

Snow Beer, produced by

unequal treaties and late-colonial western influence in China. The Germans needed beer for their sailors, soldiers and traders, and production continued after they lost the city to the Japanese in World War I
.

Apart from Tsingtao, other major Chinese brewing groups include

Zhujiang Beer. Many major international brewers now have interests in, or joint ventures with, Chinese breweries, and popular international brands such as Carlsberg
are now produced in China. This gives them access to the Chinese market while providing capital and expertise to help upgrade local brewing standards, albeit at the cost of variety.

Beer is brewed in Hong Kong, which has a large brewery owned by San Miguel Corporation of the Philippines, as well as a microbrewery producing several beers for the local market.

Brewpubs are gaining popularity in China, primarily in major cities which have a resident western community, though there are a few exceptions in more remote locations like Bad Monkey Brewery in Dali Old Town, Yunnan. Shanghai Brewery, Boxing Cat Brewery, The BREW and Dr. Beer are some of the more prominent craft breweries in Shanghai. In Beijing, several craft breweries such as Great Leap Brewing, Jing-A Brewing, Panda Brew Pub, and Slow Boat Brewery have become staples in the local nightlife scene. Another popular brewpub is Kaiwei Beer House, a chain based in Wuhan
. Craft beer festivals have been popularized since the early 2010s in Beijing and Shanghai. Two popular beer festivals in Shanghai, Shanghai International Beer Festival and Shanghai Beer Week, were both started in 2012.

In 2015 market share of imported beer reached 1.14% and volume increased by 58.9% to 538.5 million litres.[16]

List of major Chinese beers

Note: This is a partial list of China's major breweries. The vast majority of China's breweries serve only their local vicinity.

  • Gleckes Beer (格力森啤酒)-北京格力森酒业有限公司
  • Hangzhou Qiandaohu Beer Co., Ltd.
    (杭州千岛湖啤酒有限公司) - producer of Cheerday Beer
  • Harbin Beer
    (哈尔滨啤酒)
  • Reeb (力波啤酒)
  • Snow beer
    (雪花啤酒)
  • Tsingtao Beer (青岛啤酒)
  • Yanjing Beer
    (燕京啤酒)
  • Zhujiang Beer
    (珠江啤酒)
  • China Pabst Blue Ribbon (蓝带啤酒)
  • Wusu Beer (乌苏啤酒) Xinjiang
  • Kingway Beer (金威啤酒)
  • Lushan Beer(庐山啤酒)
  • Shangri-La Beer(香格里拉啤酒)

Non-alcoholic beer

There is a growing consumer inclination towards less strong beer in China as health conscious individuals are seeking wholesome and lower caloric options in their choice of beer, and consumers who want low alcohol and healthier drinks are noted to be mainly young women.

non-alcoholic beer in China in 2012 with its product, 'Qingdao 0.00', that is brewed from Czech hops and Australian barley.[18][19]

Jonny Forsyth, a global drinks analyst of

Qingdao enjoying massive support from consumers based on sales and annual profits.[20]

See also

References

  1. ^ Gershon, Livia. "Remains of 9,000-Year-Old Beer Found in China". Smithsonian Magazine. Retrieved 2021-09-12.
  2. ^ "9,000-Year-Old Beer Re-Created From Chinese Recipe". National Geographic Society. Archived from the original on July 22, 2005.
  3. ^ Visiting Shenyang Snow Beer's Old Brewery (in Chinese)
  4. ^ "As China's craft beer craze takes off, brewers hatch ambitious plans". Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  5. ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved 2016-01-20.
  6. ^ "China is getting a taste for craft beers, but not for craft brewing". Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  7. ^ McDonnell, Justin (2013-07-24). "Forget Portland: China Might Just Be the New Epicenter of Craft Beer". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  8. ^ Tone, Sixth (2016-07-22). "China's Craft Beer Revolution". Archived from the original on 2017-02-16. Retrieved 2016-09-04.
  9. ^ "'No trouble brewing,' beer industry insists". China Daily. Retrieved 2008-12-08.
  10. PMID 19320537
    .
  11. PMID 31798054
    .
  12. ^ Markets, Research and. "Analyzing the $500 Billion Global Beer Industry 2019". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  13. ^ "What's on tap for the global beer market?". www.jpmorgan.com. J.P. Morgan. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  14. ^ Woo, Mars (Sep 13, 2013). "China's Top Beer Makers Named". China Topix. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
  15. ^ "A blue-collar beer goes upmarket". Danwei. Archived from the original on 2012-11-29. Retrieved 2011-08-27.
  16. ^ "China. The market share of imported beer reached 1.14%". Retrieved 22 January 2016.
  17. ^ "Understanding drinking culture in China - Daxue Consulting". daxueconsulting.com. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  18. ^ "The Booming Non-Alcoholic Beer Market in China". Mersol & Luo. 2019-06-13. Archived from the original on 2020-07-26. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  19. ^ "Qingdao Beer launches non-alcoholic beer _ China.org.cn". www.china.org.cn. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
  20. ^ Industry, Asia Pacific Food (2017-09-21). "Low Or No Alcohol Beer On The Rise In China". Asia Pacific Food Industry. Retrieved 2020-05-09.

External links

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