Makgeolli is more than a drink. In this class at Baekusaeng Makgeolli inside Ahyeon Market, you learn what makes Korean rice wine tick, plus you craft your own batch. I love the hands-on brewing and the way Joe Kim (brewery founder and Korean Alcohol Sommelier) makes craft vs commercial make sense. One catch: it packs a lot into two hours, so you should expect a fast pace and plenty of sampling.

The best part is the learning-to-taste rhythm. You’ll sample different styles (including craft and commercial/premium), do blind tastings, and then get practical guidance on choosing ingredients and tools. It’s $80 per person for a small group, light snacks, and a take-home fermentation kit, but you’ll want to plan on using public transport instead of driving.

Quick highlights

• Joe Kim teaches from the top: brewery owner and Korean Alcohol Sommelier leads the session, with Korean, Spanish, and English support.
• Craft vs commercial, with real tasting: you don’t just read the labels; you sample the differences.
• Blind tastings plus Soju sampling: you train your palate and learn how makgeolli fits beside Korea’s other popular rice drinks.
• You make a batch yourself: the class is designed for hands-on brewing, not a one-way demo.
• Take-home fermentation kit (~1.5 liters): you leave with the ingredients and setup to ferment at home.

Entering Ahyeon Market: Where Makgeolli Classes Feel Local

This experience happens in Gyeonggi Province-adjacent Seoul, specifically in central Seoul at Baekusaeng Makgeolli, located inside Ahyeon Market. That matters more than it sounds. When your “classroom” is in a working market area, makgeolli stops feeling like a museum drink and starts feeling like something people still make, trade, and share.

Your meeting point is Baekusaeng Makgeolli at 백구생 (Baekusaeng Makgeolli), Mapo-gu, Ahyeon-dong 346-35, inside Ahyeon Market. The location also helps you build an easy start plan for the day: you can pair the class with nearby Seoul street wandering afterward, since the activity ends where it starts.

If you’re the type who likes to avoid the stress of “where do we meet,” you’ll appreciate the clarity of the directions: you head to Ahyeon Station (Line 2), use Exit 4, walk straight past Mega Coffee, turn left, and continue until you see the market entrance. The shop logo helps you confirm you’re in the right place.

The Two-Hour Flow: Tasting First, Brewing Right After

The class runs about 2 hours. In that time, you’ll go through a sequence that keeps you from getting bored: taste, compare, talk, then make. Small group size is limited to 10 participants, which is a big deal for a hands-on food or drink workshop—there’s enough space for questions, and you’re not just watching someone else work.

Here’s what the session is designed to include:

• Ingredient and tool education (so your batch isn’t a mystery)
• Side-by-side tasting of craft and commercial makgeolli styles
• Blind tasting and tasting of multiple Korean rice wines
• Brewing your own homemade makgeolli
• A take-home kit so you can ferment after class
• Light snacks to keep you comfortable through the tasting

Because you’ll be ready to sample many types, the tone is active, not formal. You should also plan for the fact that alcohol sampling is part of the curriculum. Avoid scheduling this right before anything where you’ll need to be 100% alert and sober, and skip driving.

Who Joe Kim Is (And Why That Teaching Style Matters)

The instructor is Joe Kim, the brewery founder and Korean Alcohol Sommelier. He’s also the author of the first complete English guide to home brewing Korean rice wine, and he teaches in Korean, Spanish, and English.

That blend of real-world brewing + sommelier-style tasting is what makes this class feel different from a typical “maker workshop.” If you only learn the steps without tasting comparisons, you can end up with a batch that technically follows instructions but doesn’t teach you what changes quality. Here, you get both: you learn the methods, then you taste your way toward understanding why those methods matter.

The course also includes theory and history while you sample. That’s useful because makgeolli isn’t just a flavor—it’s a Korean fermentation tradition with its own context. When someone explains where practices came from, it’s easier to remember what you should do and what you should avoid when you brew at home.

Craft vs Commercial Makgeolli: The Comparison You’ll Actually Remember

One of the clearest “learning outcomes” in this class is tasting the differences between craft and commercial makgeolli, with samples included as part of the session. You’ll also explore and taste more than one type along the spectrum, including commercial and premium styles.

Why that’s valuable: most people meet makgeolli as a single drink option—sweet, milky, fizzy, done. Once you compare styles directly, you start noticing patterns: differences in aroma, mouthfeel, balance, and how the drink finishes. The class helps you build that sense of comparison by pairing tasting with explanation.

Even better, you’ll do blind tastings and sample Soju during the session. Blind tasting is a smart teaching tool because it forces you to focus on what’s in the glass rather than what the label promises. And sampling Soju in the same session gives you an immediate side-by-side reference point with another Korean classic. You’ll come away with a clearer idea of where makgeolli sits in Korea’s rice-alcohol world.

Ingredients and Tools: How You Get from Recipe to Real Brew

This class isn’t just “mix and pour.” It covers, in depth, how to think about the choices behind makgeolli: selecting ingredients and selecting the right tools for the job.

You’ll learn:

• How to choose the ingredients (the right basics for your batch)
• How to pick the tools you’ll need
• How the overall process fits into the tradition and theory of Korean rice wine

Even if you’ve brewed at home before, the tool-and-ingredient emphasis is where workshops can separate themselves from shortcuts. The goal is to help you avoid the common beginner issues—like using equipment that doesn’t work well for fermentation, or treating ingredients like interchangeable parts.

And since the class includes theory plus hands-on brewing, it’s easier to translate what you learn into your take-home kit later. You’re not trying to guess what happens off the classroom table.

Your Homemade Makgeolli Moment: Making It, Not Watching It

The hands-on part is the payoff. You’ll craft your own homemade makgeolli during the session, with guidance so you’re not just following vibes.

What you can expect in practice:

• You’ll work through the process steps with instruction
• You’ll connect what you’re doing to what you tasted earlier
• You’ll get a tasting component that reinforces the learning

A couple practical realities here. First, because the group is limited to 10 and the duration is fixed at 2 hours, the session pace stays tight. Second, the room will include the smell and feel of fermenting ingredients—so don’t wear clothes you’re emotionally attached to.

The upside: when you build your batch yourself, you understand your next actions. You’ll know what you’re supposed to look for during fermentation because you learned how the batch got made in the first place.

Take-Home Fermentation Kit: What You Leave With

You’ll take home a makgeolli kit to ferment at home. The yield is about 1.5 liters. If you can’t take the kit, you can receive a finished bottle instead.

This is one of the strongest value points of the experience. Many drink workshops end with tasting and a vague “maybe try it yourself someday.” Here, you get the materials to actually ferment after you’re back in your own kitchen.

One important tip: bring a reusable bag. You’ll need it to take your makgeolli vessel with you. If you forget, you’ll be solving that problem right after class.

Also, plan your timing. Your fermentation starts after you leave, so you’ll want to be in a stable routine at home and not immediately jump into a multi-day trip where you can’t monitor what you brought.

Price and Value: Why $80 Can Be Fair Here

At $80 per person, this class is not a “cheap activity.” Still, it can be good value if you like hands-on learning and you care about what happens after the tasting.

You’re paying for:

• A small group setting limited to 10 participants
• Hands-on brewing instructions
• Tasting that includes craft and commercial/premium makgeolli
• Blind tasting and Soju sampling
• Light snacks
• A take-home kit that yields about 1.5 liters for fermentation
• Instruction from the founder, plus sommelier-style tasting approach

If you only wanted a couple sips and a quick explanation, you’d find cheaper options. But if you want a teachable method—plus the real materials to do fermentation at home—this price can make more sense. Especially when you compare it to the cost of supplies you’d buy separately and the time you’d spend learning by trial and error.

Getting There from Seoul: Ahyeon Station Exit 4

If you’re using public transit, keep it simple.

By Subway:

• Go to Ahyeon Station (Line 2), Exit 4
• Walk straight until you see Mega Coffee
• Turn left and walk straight
• You’ll see the market entrance on the left
• Look for the shop logo on the market’s interior

By Bus or Taxi:

• Take the bus to 웨딩타운버스정류장 (Wedding Town bus stop)
• Tell the taxi driver to drop you there

One more practical thought: because the class includes alcohol sampling and you should be ready to drink, avoid arrangements that require you to be sober within the next hour. Public transport is the easiest fit here.

Who Should Book This Class (And Who Should Skip It)

This works best for people who want more than a tasting. If you like learning how food or drink is made, want hands-on instruction, and enjoy structured comparisons between similar styles, you’ll probably have a great time.

It’s also a nice option if you want English support. The class is taught by Joe Kim with Korean, Spanish, and English.

Skip it if any of these apply:

• You’re under 21
• You’re pregnant
• You need to drive right after (sampling is part of the experience)

And remember the rules: no smoking indoors, and alcohol and drugs aren’t allowed.

Should You Book Baekusaeng Makgeolli’s Class?

Yes, if you want a real makgeolli workshop with instruction, tasting comparisons, and a take-home fermentation kit. The combination of founder-led teaching, craft vs commercial sampling, and the hands-on brewing step makes it feel like learning you can carry into your own kitchen.

Think twice if you hate fast pacing or you’re sensitive to alcohol tasting. Two hours is tight, and the session is built around sampling many types. Also, make sure you can transport the kit afterward—bring a reusable bag and plan your route.

If you’re aiming for an authentic Seoul-area food and drink experience with a practical outcome, this is a strong choice.

FAQ

Where is the meeting point for this makgeolli class?

The class meets at 백구생 (Baekusaeng Makgeolli), 마포구 아현동 346-35, inside Ahyeon Market. The activity ends back at this same meeting point.

How long is the class?

The duration is 2 hours.

How much does it cost?

The price is $80 per person.

How big is the group?

The group is small, limited to 10 participants.

Who teaches the class?

Joe Kim teaches the class. He is the brewery founder and a Korean Alcohol Sommelier, and the class is offered in Korean, Spanish, and English.

What’s included in the experience?

You get ingredient and tool explanations, hands-on makgeolli making, tastings of craft makgeolli, blind tastings, Soju sampling, and light snacks. You also take home a fermentation kit.

Do I take home makgeolli after class?

Yes. You’ll take home a kit to ferment that yields about 1.5 liters. If you can’t take the kit, you can receive a finished bottle instead.

Is alcohol involved?

Yes. The class includes sampling many types of makgeolli and also includes Soju sampling, so avoid driving and use public transportation. Smoking indoors is not allowed, and alcohol and drugs aren’t allowed.

Do I need to bring anything?

Bring a reusable bag to take your makgeolli vessel with you.

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