China rolls out the barrels as millions flock to 'Beer City'

CHINA: Millions of beer enthusiasts are due to descend on Qingdao over the next two weeks for the Chinese coastal city's beer festival, an annual pilgrimage to pay homage to Tsingtao lager, the country's most popular brew.

Now in its 14th year, the beer festival takes place in marquees in the specially constructed area of town known as "Beer City," and this year is expected to beat all records with four million visitors from China and abroad.

"This is my third time in three years. The atmosphere is good and there's a good crowd," says Qingdao resident and beer fan Yu Qinglei (28), who says he drinks an average of five bottles of beer a day.

Beer City is crowded, although surprisingly few people are quaffing beer while walking around.

One over-active reveller is passed out near the exit in a pool of vomit, but this is an exceptional case, unlike the Oktoberfest in Munich, where the streets between the tents are littered with beer casualties.

In a juxtaposition common in new China, Mao-suited pensioners mix with high-fashionistas, all wandering among the big marquees of Beer City, many of them offering the inevitable karaoke facilities. The atmosphere is overwhelmingly cheerful.

Qingdao itself is a handsome city, its red-tiled roofs a relic of the German settlers who built their churches and consular buildings in signature German style, and ran what was then the colony of Tsingtao from 1897 until the Japanese took over during the first World War.

The old city is perched on hills overlooking the sea; the streets in the old section have stone walls guarding big gardens and beautifully restored old mansions. The city is a big draw for domestic tourists.

Mr Yu's favourite beer is, perhaps unsurprisingly, Tsingtao, the local beer brewed in the city since the Germans set up a brewery, using the local Laoshan mineral water and implementing the famous German beer purity law to make what is now acknowledged to be the most popular of Chinese beers around the world.

"I've tried foreign beers but don't really like the flavour," says Mr Yu.

Beer consumption may be dropping in the west, but in China it's on the rise, having doubled in the last decade.

Keen to take advantage of this untapped market, foreign brewers are a big presence at the festival, especially the big German, Japanese and Belgian breweries.

At one stand, bottles of Guinness are on sale at 25 yuan (€2.50) a go, but are not selling well compared to Hoegaarden, Paulaner and a beer called Super Beer. Lager is a big seller in China; stout is still a relatively rare choice.

Barman Wang Lian, who is a computer science student, has no personal preference.

"I don't drink. I'm at university so I don't really like beer," he says defying the traditional image of students.