Beer's Virtue Benefit Liver 啤酒有益于肝脏 ?

Now, I'm no expert on alcohol, and luckily I wasn't relying on the Qingdao drinks industry to illuminate the depths of my ignorance. Especially after seeing 'beer's virtue benefits liver' on a sign in the Qingdao beer museum, I think I should probably disregard most information picked up on my travels. 

The first stop on my alcohol adventure was Chateau Huadong-Parry (华东百利酒庄), which the ticket boldly claims is 'China's no.1 European style wine chateau', founded in 1985 by Michael Parry. Commenting on the scenery in Winter would be a tad unfair, as the grapevines were bare it made for rather bleak viewing, but I can imagine in Summer the nearby hills would be covered in row upon row of endless green. But I can comment on the "chateau" itself. 

*Disclaimer: Huadong-Parry Chateau does not come with real sparkles.

Upon entering the chateau, there is a compulsory video watching session, 10 minutes of pure Chinese gold. Complete with its own tacky American voice-over and CGI Disney style story book structure, the video aims to introduce the history and integrity of the Huadong-Parry brand, taking on the mantle of European wine traditions, winning glory for China, etc, etc. The video is saturated with the gaudy, tasteless interior design that Chinese people associate with European grandeur. Unfortunately, you leave the video room and find the chateau was the setting for the filming, except probably quite a few years ago, as the garish grape covered wallpaper is already stained and peeling. 

The wine tasting room was another decorating debacle, as well as being unwelcomingly cold. Fair enough, they probably weren't expecting guests and so hadn't bothered with the heating. One commendable feature of this room were the large glass windows, that let you look out towards the swans swimming in the pond, or the out-of-place grecian statues, or perhaps the dominating bust of Michael Parry himself. 

For the Y50 ticket, I got to have a go at wine tasting. Yes, I sat there with a wine glass in my hand, swirling and sniffing a 2007 red like I actually had a clue about wines. Obviously, I didn't really have much opinion on this part. I can only relay the well-informed views of Will's father, who said they lacked distinction but would be perfectly acceptable as house wines, and definitely shouldn't cost over £15 a bottle. Which is quite amusing when considering the introductory video, which made it sound like none other than Jesus had created this wine, nay, miracle. 

We also got a tour of the wine cellar's collection of impressive oak barrels, and some other things too, I forget. Of course, the final stop was the wine shop. The only thing that seemed to affect the price of the wine was the decoration of the bottle and case. The more showy and ornate, the more you pay. You can visualise a Chinese businessman slowly presenting the beautiful case, delicately opening it, then withdrawing the prized embellished bottle from inside, to the oohs and aahs of all around the table. It's all an exercise to flaunt your wealth. The most expensive bottle we saw was over Y5000, a price that could buy you wine from some of Europe's best Chateaus. According to one of our teachers, most Chinese don't even like the taste of wine, and will add lemonade to la Fete. Well, I'd have to agree with them on that point, although I'd probably pass up a good wine for an orange juice so that it wouldn't be wasted on me.  

What kind of blog post about Qingdao's drinks industry would this be if I failed to mention the legend that is Tsingtao Beer. Internationally, Tsingtao is Qingdao's claim to fame, and it is affectionally known by the locals as Qingpi (as shortened form of 青岛啤酒 Qingdao Pijiu). So, a trip to the Qingdao Beer museum was in order. 

Today, Tsingtao beer production takes place in Laoshan, and in various sites all over China. Tsingtaos's original 1903 factory has been converted into what is now the Tsingtao Beer Museum. Despite its age, the museum site is still very large, as it was expanded with each new generation. Because Tsingtao is such a prominent brand in China and abroad, it attracts large groups of domestic tourists. Be warned. 

Thematic water feature - 干杯!

Apparently beer comes from outer space, from which it was bequeathed to Qingdao in China's Shandong province.   

There was a very interesting collection of advertising posters, which traced the history and ownership of the brewery, with some posters even featuring swastikas while the company had German ties in the 1930s. The above was my particular favourite. 
  

Something I think my father will be interested in.

All in all, the Museum provides information on much more than just Tsingtao beer with a huge range of exhibits, and opportunities to drink the beer itself. A highlight was the 'drunk simulator', where an entire room is set on a tilt, so you end up unable to stand and clinging to the wall in disorientation. Naturally, theres a camera, so those outside can watch you struggle to walk across the room in a straight line. Hilarious.