Walking on the streets of Qingdao, it seems that the aroma of malt and hops of beer can be smelled everywhere. Every traveler who comes to Qingdao will regard drinking a glass of authentic and fresh Qingdao beer as a must-experience during this trip.

Starting from June every year, whether it is the bustling Dengzhou Road Beer Street, the numerous beer houses in the market alleys, or the beer and barbecue stalls by the roadside, they are all crowded with a large number of "beer lovers". Every August, the Qingdao International Beer Festival upgrades the "beer-drinking" experience. During the festival, hundreds of beer brands from all over the world can be tasted, and "beer lovers" can drink thousands of tons of beer within a month.

This article will provide travelers with a detailed interpretation of the local beer-drinking map in Qingdao as well as a guide to the annual Qingdao International Beer Festival.

People in Qingdao almost only drink the local beer brand - Qingdao Beer, with sub-brands such as Laoshan Beer and Shanshui Beer under its umbrella. Compared with the common bottled beer, the locals prefer to drink fresh draft beer. Carrying beer in plastic bags is a unique sight on the streets of Qingdao.

The draft beer in the plastic bag is the freshest beer produced on the same day. It has a mellow taste but a short shelf life and is best drunk on the same day. The beer vendors usually provide beer bags for free.

Draft beer is divided into three types: original pulp, pure draft, and dark beer. Among them, the original pulp beer is the most favored by the locals. Different from ordinary beer, the original pulp beer is the raw beer liquid directly bottled from the fermentation tank without filtration treatment. It contains a certain amount of active yeast, showing a certain turbidity, and its beer foam is extremely rich and has a long-lasting cling, being known as the "liquid bread in beer".

Most of Qingdao Beer is produced in four factories - Qingdao Beer Factory No.1, No.2, No.4, and No.5. Due to differences in water sources and production processes, there are taste differences among different beer factories. Generally, it is considered that the draft beer produced by Factory No.1 has the best taste, while the bottled beer produced by Factory No.2 is the most popular.

Identification Method:

There are two lines of black spray codes on the beer cap and outer packaging box. The first line is the production date, and the number at the beginning of the second line is 0. The second digit represents which factory it is from. For example, 01 means from Factory No.1, 02 means from Factory No.2, and so on.

The beer houses scattered throughout the city streets and alleys are the best choices for drinking Qingdao Beer to one's heart's content. They are usually densely distributed around larger seafood and agricultural markets. The more concentrated locations include Dengzhou Road Beer Street, around the Yingkou Road Market, and around the Sifang Road/Huangdao Road Market.

In addition, there are quite a few coastal bars around the Olympic Sailing Base, and the densely populated Japanese izakayas near Gutian Road also provide more options for tourists.

Most of the beer houses in Qingdao are around 40 square meters. The dishes mainly consist of cold dishes, and there are also various kinds of barbecue and seafood. Usually, the signs of the beer houses read "Processing with Customer-supplied Materials, Direct Supply of Qingdao Beer", which means that guests can also buy their own seafood and have it processed in the store, and there is original pulp beer directly delivered from Qingdao Beer Factory No.1. When settling the bill, "beer tokens" are used for settlement, and most of the beer houses operate all night.

Dengzhou Road: The Never-ending Beer Festival

The birthplace of Qingdao Beer is Dengzhou Road. On this short one-kilometer road, there is not only the Qingdao Beer Factory, but also China's first beer museum, as well as various beer sculptures. Therefore, Dengzhou Road is also called Beer Street.

Dengzhou Road Beer Street is open all year round. The whole street is full of beer and seafood food stalls and beer houses, and it is overcrowded every summer. Among them, "Qingdao Beer House" and "Jiuxiangyuan" are two extremely popular beer and seafood restaurants.