In about February last year, news broke about Slow City Brewery’s intention to open America’s first makgeolli brewery. Since then, it has been all quiet on the western front and we haven’t heard much since. However the Illinois Liquor Control Commission posted the brewing company’s application which is on mandatory viewing for 45 days. That means things are stepping up and we could see makgeolli finally being produced on US soil!
Nuruk from Makgeolli Festival 2012
It’s no easy thing to obtain makgeolli outside of Korea. Due to its fermentation process and short shelf life, it’s not the easiest beverage to export. It’s also notoriously difficult to get the approvals necessary for breweries to open outside of Korea. The active ingredient, nuruk, has to be shipped in from Korea and as it is a wild yeast it becomes hard to regulate. Nonetheless, it’s exciting to see some progress being made so that all those makgeolli lovers off the peninsula can get their fix soon!
For more info on the developments and some background on the story you can check it out here.
We will be keeping a close eye on this one 
