Baedari Doga

How It Began

Baedari Doga's roots go back to 1915. That year, CEO Park Sang-bin's great-great-grandfather opened a general store in Witbaedari Village in Wondang and began selling home-brewed liquor (gayangju). In 1925 his great-grandfather moved the business close to the Gyeongui Line railway and obtained the first license under the name Neunggok Brewery. Park Sang-bin says he printed his name on his business card as “5th Generation Park Sang-bin.”

In 1975 it merged with five nearby breweries into the Goyang Takju Joint Brewery, an arrangement that continues to this day. Baedari Makgeolli, found around the Goyang area, is the liquor made there. As of 2016, fourth-generation Chairman Park Gwan-won and fifth-generation CEO Park Sang-bin were carrying on the family business together. In April 2022, Park and his two sons obtained a permit for a new brewery called Baedari Doga, separate from the joint brewery.

The purpose of the new license was to release Gawajitakju, brewed with Gawaji rice. The brewery settled in Gajwa-dong, Goyang. Gawaji rice is a new variety improved from the Gawaji rice seeds, recognized as the first cultivated rice seeds on the Korean Peninsula.

The Gawaji rice seeds were unearthed in 1991 during a cultural heritage survey for the Ilsan New Town. Twelve grains were found in a Neolithic soil layer, and dating by Beta Analytic in the US confirmed they were 5,020 years old. The name “Gawaji” comes from Gawaji Village in Daehwa 4-ri, Songpo-myeon, the old name for Daehwa-dong in Ilsanseo-gu.

How the Liquor Is Made

The ingredients of Gawajitakju are 100% Gawaji rice, purified water, yeast and ipguk (nuruk), and nothing else. No other sweeteners are added. The liquor is brewed by the samyangju method, with the mash added to three times. The product information on thesool.com likewise lists the ingredients as yeast, ipguk and Gawaji rice.

Park Sang-bin washes the small-grained Gawaji rice about 15 times, as carefully as bathing a newborn baby. At the time of 2022 reporting, the brewery had no automatic stirrer. Park and his two sons took turns stirring the fermenting tanks by hand. Another nickname for the place is “the father-and-sons brewery.”

Park believes the differences in grain aroma between rice makgeolli are subtle. Instead, pointing out that it is brewed only with Gawaji rice harvested solely in Goyang, he said, “The value of Gawaji makgeolli lies in its terroir.” thesool.com says fruit aromas like banana, pear, grape skin and melon come through its heavy texture. Lee Ji-min, head of Daedong Yeojudo and a traditional liquor expert, commented that “a clean grain aroma forms the base, with a vanilla-like note as well.”

Signature Liquors and Lineage

The signature liquor is Gawajitakju. As of 2022, two versions were produced: a regular 7.5% product and a 9.5% premium product in a glass bottle. In December 2022, the retail price was ₩4,500 for the 7.5% 500mL and ₩8,000 for the 9.5% 450mL. thesool.com lists the 7.5% 500ml product and says it goes well with pajeon (green onion pancake) and oily foods.

The yakju Jugyoju is also registered as a Baedari Doga product in thesool.com's Korean liquor finder. It is a yakju/cheongju at 16% ABV in a 500ml bottle, made from domestic rice, nuruk, purified water, purified enzymes and yeast. It is an unpasteurized fresh yakju. At the time of December 2022 reporting, the brewery was preparing a follow-up product, Ilsan Makgeolli, and planning to develop a gwahaju based on its yakju license.

Baedari Makgeolli, made at the Goyang Takju Joint Brewery formed by the 1975 merger, is the family's existing brand. In 2016, fourth-generation Chairman Park Gwan-won explained that its distinctive way of producing sweetness gives it rich savory depth and aroma, and its high rice content makes the taste rich. In 2009, while serving as a director of Goyang Takju, Park Sang-bin made “Nouveau Makgeolli” from rice harvested that year. In a month-long sales contest at a department store in Gangnam, Seoul, that year, Nouveau Makgeolli outsold Beaujolais Nouveau wine.

Recognition

Baedari Makgeolli was once supplied regularly to Cheong Wa Dae. It is also known as the liquor served at the 2000 inter-Korean summit. In 2009 it set a monthly sales record for a single item at Shinsegae Department Store.

In 2026, Goyang Makgeolli 10 from Baedari Suldoga, run by Park Sang-bin's family, won the grand prize in the Korean liquor takju category of the 2026 Korea Liquor Awards. It is an additive-free takju brewed by the samyangju method, with the mash added to three times using only new-crop local rice, and fermented and aged for about 30 days. Baedari Suldoga is led jointly by CEO Park Sang-bin (5th generation) and CEOs Park Jae-hyeong and Park Geon-hyeong (6th generation).