Tsingtao: China's Best.
Written: Aug 24 '05 (Updated Aug 24 '05)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great tasting beer from China, compliments food very well.
Cons: None.
The Bottom Line: Tsingtao is China's best and most popular beer. Give it a try.
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| Ironcladd's Full Review: Tsingtao Brewing Co Pale Lager |
Tsingtao Beer: China’s Best.
By
James P. Zaworski
When one thinks of China, beer does not immediately come to mind. However, if you like beer, and you think of China, Tsingtao comes immediately to mind. Tsingtao is the biggest brewery in The People’s Republic of China. It is named after the city of Tsingtao, which is located on the east coast of China, southeast of Beijing. Of course, the westernized “pinyin” spelling of Tsingtao has changed, to Qingdao, but both pronunciations remain the same ( essentially pronounced “ching dow”). This beer was first exported to the west in 1972, after Nixon’s visit. It is now the number one food based consumer export from China, which is saying a lot.
What I like about Tsingtao Beer.
Taste for Price Value.
I am on holiday now in The People's Republic of China for one month, after living and working in Taiwan for six months. I am also job hunting, and I have at least got another couple of weeks here, but perhaps a year here, if I choose to take one of the job offers I have here. One thing I can say is that Tsingtao is a great tasting beer that goes well with lunch and dinner, and times in between and after. The taste for value ratio is really great here in China. What I mean is that I pay 2.90 Renminbi for 25 ounces of Tsingtao beer in a bottle. That comes out to about $0.36 per bottle, which is an incredible deal! Of course, that is the price in the supermarket here. In the restaurants it is much more expensive, coming to a similar price to beer in the USA.
Tsingtao is a slightly pilsner tasting lager beer. This beer has a slightly hoppy flavor to it, and it makes a very good compliment to most Chinese food, but it can also be easily imbibed whilst eating western foods. Tsingtao has a nice fragrance, too, and is not as “beer-ish” smelling as American swill. Essentially, Tsingtao that is brewed for consumption domestically in China is the same as the beer made for export to the west. It may come in a different bottle, but it still tastes the same.
Alcohol content.
This beer is relatively low in alcohol content, being 3.8% by weight, and 4.8% by volume. You get about 157 calories per twelve ounces, so when I consume a 25 ounce bottle, it’s over 300 calories. But it also means you won’t be sloshed on one or two bottles.
When I was living and working in Taiwan, I was paying about $50 Taiwan dollars for the same size bottle as I purchase in China that costs 2.90 Renminbi. In Taiwan, that 25 ounce bottle comes out to a whopping $1.51 United States! Still, it is a bargain as compared with the USA prices, at about $6-7 for a six pack of twelve ouncers.
All in all, Tsingtao beer is my favorite Chinese beer. It tastes good, isn’t to filling, isn’t too pricey, and it compliments Chinese food, and most cuisine, as well as any comparable pilsner type beer. Tsingtao will remain on my menu, wherever I end up.
Cheers from China!
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
Ironcladd
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 - Top 500 |
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Member: James Zaworski
Location: Shenzhen, China
Reviews written: 504
Trusted by: 157 members
About Me:
I am an English teacher, Archeologist and Anthropologist.
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