
Learn How to Make Makgeolli – Traditional Korean Rice Liquor
April 4 @ 18:30 - 20:30
€50.00
Come join us on April 4th for a hands-on workshop where you’ll learn how to make makgeolli, Korea’s traditional rice liquor. We’ll start with a quick look at its history, then dive straight into making your own batch, which you’ll get to take home. To wrap things up, we’ll have a tasting of different styles of makgeolli. Makgeolli is a Korean rice liquor made through a process that’s similar to sake, but more rustic. Instead of using pure koji starter, it’s made with nuruk, a pressed grain cake packed with koji, wild yeast, bacteria, and other microbes from the Korean countryside. Makgeolli is a little sour, a little floral, and pleasantly sweet, with subtle hints of steamed rice. It’s not very strong, so it’s a perfect —but treacherous!—match for spicy food and good company.
In the workshop, you’ll mix rice, nuruk, and water with your hands to get the fermentation going. You’ll take home a 1L jar of your own makgeolli, along with instructions on how to take care of it. It’ll be ready to drink in about a week. During the tasting, you’ll get to try makgeolli made with different grains and at different ages, so you can figure out what you like best. We’ll also talk about how to serve it and how to experiment with adding flavors. This workshop is hosted by Masha and Mikhail of Brewery Gevel, Amsterdam. Starting as beer brewers, they’ve expanded their expertise to makgeolli, kimchi, and other fermentation projects. They have been brewing makgeolli for six years, ever since they brought rustic nuruk cakes back from Jeju Island, South Korea.