Local brew serves up heady times

Beer Street in Qingdao, opened in 2003 to showcase the city's beer culture, is home to more than 60 pubs and restaurants. Liu Yang / For China Daily

By Zhao Yanrong and Xie Chuanjiao

QINGDAO - Li Dayi, a 24-year-old resident of Qingdao, can be proof of what it is like to grow up in the coastal city in eastern Shandong province.

"I didn't like drinking before I was 20, but I felt I wasn't a real Qingdao person without beer in my life," Li said.

Now the insurance agent cannot get enough of the local Tsingtao Beer that is famous throughout the country and worldwide.

During lunch or supper in Qingdao, it is common to see residents strolling down the streets with plastic bags of fresh beer from the brewery.

There are no bottles needed - the bags are literally filled to the brim with beer and the scene is unique to the city.

At a small pub in the Yan'an Third Road, a group of men walk out of the pub with flushed faces and big smiles.

A slogan in front of the pub - "Drink beers in Qingdao, make friends around the world" - illustrates further how the drink is integral to the Qingdao experience.

Gao Jun, a sailing amateur in Qingdao, runs a pub called Lennon Bar that combines home-style dishes.

"I don't expect to make a lot of money from the bar, but I hope I can provide a place for friends to catch up and develop common interests," Gao said.

As a member of a sailing team, Gao meets up with all his team members and other sailing friends in his pub on Thursday nights.

"I talk about sailing and music with my friends from all around the world," he said.

To showcase the beer culture of the city, authorities in 2003 also opened a Beer Street. It is home to more than 60 pubs and restaurants.

Pubs are open side by side along the street in Qingdao. In the summer, tables are set up outside the bars. These are usually filled with people drinking beer and eating seafood, regardless of the dust from passing vehicles. In August, the open air banquet hits a peak with the Qingdao beer festival.

Qingdao hosts the largest beer festival in Asia during the second weekend of August every year. International breweries from all over the globe flock to its sandy shores.

The first beer festival took place in 1991. The Qingdao International Beer Festival is now an internationally recognized event and successfully combines tourism, culture and sport to play a valuable role in promoting the economic interests of the city.

Last year's beer festival received about 250,000 tourists a day from home and abroad. The Qingdao International Beer Hall hosted 360,000 visitors in a single day. They drank about 930,000 tons of beer provided by more than 20 world-famous beer manufacturers, organizers said, marking a record for the festival.

Other than beer, karaoke singing sessions and barbecues were also offered during the festival. Daily performances were given at the Beer Town's Center Theater, where colorful fountains, high-tech laser shows and dramatic audio effects wowed audiences.

For Zhao Liqiong, a 21-year-old college student who visited the beer festival with her boyfriend during her summer holiday last year, the event was a "fun-filled carnival".

"Local people were very friendly when they found out we were from another city. They told me where they had the best beers and most delicious food," Zhao said.

Those who have never been to Qingdao are also likely to have drunk Tsingtao, most likely at a Chinese restaurant.

Tsingtao Brewery is one of the oldest beer producers in China, founded in 1903 by German and British merchants. Through a century's development, the brew has entered more than 70 countries and regions including the United States, Japan, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, Canada, Brazil and Mexico.

The company was a sponsor of the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The brand value of Tsingtao Beer is reported to be as high as 36.625 billion yuan (3.87 billion euros), making Tsingtao Brewery the top Chinese beer company among the world's top 500 brands.

The beer giant also built a museum about beer culture.

The museum is considered a must-see in Qingdao. It outlines the history of the brand from its beginnings to modern day practices. Visitors can look at old brewery equipment, including some left by the Germans and Japanese.

A studio tour also allows visitors to print their faces on a beer label so that they have a "personalized Tsingtao Beer".