Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Food & Drink

The Manual may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

Makgeolli: Fun to Pronounce and Even More Fun to Drink

By

makgeolli
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Makgeolli, pronounced “mahk-oh-lee” or “mahk-ah-lee,” should be added to the rice-based beverage category in your mind’s archives. Finally, the likes of horchata, sake, and shochu will have some company.  Like soju, this traditional Korean beverage dates back millennia, but millennials in South Korea are making it increasingly relevant and sought after. If you want to party like an ancient rice farmer, you’ve come to the right place.

Makgeolli is a grain spirit that uses rice in its fermentation process. The unfiltered result? A milky rice wine with approximately 7 percent ABV. The light carbonation enhances the sweet-tart flavor profile, adding nuance to each sip.

makgeolli rice wine pots
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The magic starts with nuruk, a carb-laden dry cake made out of rice, wheat, barley, and a host of yeasts, bacteria, even mold. Still with us? Traditionally made in porous clay pots, makgeolli doesn’t take much more than a week to make once the nuruk sets its sights on some cooked sweet rice. That cocktail of wild activating agents create the playful flavors of makgeolli, coaxing new life out of the carbs through the fermentation process. Unpasteurized, you get all the tasting notes you want from a Korean wine influenced by a culinary scene instead of the alcohol industry.

Recommended Videos
makgeolli rice wine bottle
Image courtesy of Cytryna/Flickr Image courtesy of Cytryna/Flickr
If you’re lucky enough to find a bottle of makgeolli, it’s probably a pasteurized version. Trade regulations require pasteurization in order for the wine to survive the trip to the U.S. As a result, the product errs on the sweet side and has a fixed level of carbonation. If you find yourself wanting to try imported makgeolli, at least make sure it’s from Korea; Japanese versions are inauthentic, but increasingly more available than Korean competitors due to makgeolli’s popularity within Japan.

The real deal needs to be sourced  locally because, ideally, makgeolli keeps fermenting until it’s no longer palatable. In this way, it earns its wine categorization by rapidly accelerating from fresh to “vintage.” Each stage dramatically changes the tasting experience and elevates the effervescence, but most makgeolli makers aren’t pushing the envelope too much. Since preservatives ruin the taste and even fermentation-friendly bottles (read: no exploding on the truck) are difficult to move, you should look to predominantly Korean neighborhoods near you for local brands and bars that serve makgeolli.

makgeolli rice wine
Image used with permission by copyright holder

If you manage to find makgeolli on a menu, here’s how you know it’s the real deal. It will likely be presented as a batch in a wooden bowl (sometimes carafes or kettles make an appearance) and poured into small bowls via a large ladle. The carbonation makes it an ideal palate cleanser while its kombucha-esque qualities will help you digest just about anything. If you snag a bottle to enjoy at home, enjoy it quickly. After a month or two, your makgeolli will become rice vinegar which, while useful, is not the best liquid to drink straight.

You’ll want to ease into your makgeolli habit. Everything about it will confuse your senses. It looks like milk, but tastes like tangy citrus and fizzes like a beer. Once your taste buds figure out what’s happening, then — maybe — you can try out a cocktail or two.

The Rose of Sharon

(Created by Jung-Sik Yim, JUNGSIK, New York City)

  • 2 oz makgeolli
  • 1.5 oz soju
  • .025 oz sour mix
  • 0.75 oz bokbunja (Korean fruit wine made from raspberries)

Method: Combine all ingredients except bokbunja and stir with ice. Strain into a

martini glass

. Pour in  bokbunja last and stir after it’s all settled to the bottom.

Ok Sun Fizz

(Created by Maria Carlin, Big Star, Chicago)

  • 2 oz makgeolli
  • 1 oz mezcal
  • 1 oz ginger syrup
  • 0.5 oz lime juice
  • 0.5 oz lemon juice
  • 1 egg white
  • Orange flower water
  • Soda water
  • Cucumber soda

Method: Add the first six ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice and a couple dashes of orange flower water. Shake for two to three minutes. Pour a little soda water into a

Collins glass

, add the cocktail mixture, and top with cucumber soda and a couple more drops of orange flower water.

Topics
J. Fergus
J. Fergus
Former Digital Trends Contributor
J. loves writing about the vices of life — decadent food, strong drinks, potent cannabis, and increasingly invasive…
What does bottled in bond actually mean?
What is bottled-in-bond?
Heaven Hill bottled in bond

When it comes to bourbon, there are a handful of rules and regulations. To be considered a bourbon whiskey, it must have a mash bill of at least 51% corn (although the percentage is usually higher) with the rest of the ingredients, including any combination of wheat, rye, or barley. It also must be made in the U.S. (although not just in Kentucky as a bourbon purist might try to tell you).

Bourbon must also be distilled to a proof no higher than 160 proof. When entering the barrel, it can be no higher than 125-proof. It must be matured in new, charred American oak barrels. It also must be bottled at no less than 80-proof. For regular bourbon whiskey, there’s no aging period required. But, if you want to refer to it as a “straight” bourbon, it must be matured for at least two full years. And while these rules seem fairly complicated, they get even more strict when you get into bottled-in-bond whiskey.
What is bottled-in-bond whiskey?

Read more
The best beer destination in Europe is not what you think
You'll be surprised to learn the top beer city in Europe
Beer

While beer is a big deal in the United States, it’s only been going through a boom for the last few decades. While there are well over 9,000 breweries currently operating in the country, back in 1988, there were only 100 craft breweries in the US. That’s a massive shift in beer’s popularity in 35 years.

Europe, on the other hand, has brewing traditions that extend for hundreds of years. While the US has only existed as a country since 1776, Germany’s Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan in the heart of Bavaria has been brewing beer since 1040. That’s a staggering 700 years longer than the US existed as a country.

Read more
How to cook skirt steak: The tips you need
You really can't go wrong with this cut of steak.
skewered steak

There are a few rare items in the culinary world that are both mouthwateringly divine while still being relatively affordable. In a world where grocery store prices are higher than ever, it is increasingly seldom that one can find a delicious steak behind the butcher counter and still have a few dollars left in the budget for a good bottle of wine. Thankfully, skirt steak is one of those precious gifts.

This buttery, budget-friendly cut of steak comes from the diaphragm muscle of the cow and is a bit oddly shapen in its long and lean cut. It can contain some connective tissue (otherwise known as silver skin) that should be trimmed before cooking, but doesn't otherwise require any special preparations other than a good marinade.

Read more