Farmer's Brew · Milky Rice Wine
Makgeolli
Photo: 국립국어원 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 kr
It's unfiltered on purpose — the cloudy, milky look comes from leftover rice sediment, and you're supposed to shake or stir the bottle before pouring.
Makgeolli is a low-alcohol, slightly fizzy rice wine made by fermenting steamed rice with nuruk (a fermentation starter), giving it a tangy, faintly sweet taste. It's traditionally poured from a kettle into bowls and paired with pajeon (scallion pancakes) at street-side pojangmacha tents.
Why it's made this way: Once dismissed as a rustic farmer's drink, it has become a symbol of Korean street-food culture and seen a major revival among younger Koreans in recent years.
More from South Korea
Tteokbokki (Spicy Rice Cakes)
Hotteok (Sweet Filled Pancake)
Eomuk / Odeng (어묵)
Korean Corn Dog (핫도그)
Part of World of Street Food — 690 dishes from 118 countries.
Something wrong here? Tell us in the comments below.
Photo credits.