Guruma Brewery's "Yuja Ga09" won Best of 2026, given to this year's top Koreansul Korean rice wine institutional sector at the 2026 Korea Liquor Awards. In the non-Korean rice wine institutional sector, Han Young-seok Fermentation Research Institute's Dohan Cheongmyeongju 15 won, and in distilled spirits, Chusa40 from Agricultural Corporation Yesan Apple Wine Co. won.
The Korea Liquor Awards is Korea's flagship liquor competition, now in its 13th year. With the goal of "discovering and widely promoting good domestic liquor and supporting the formation of a sound drinking culture," ChosunBiz has hosted it annually since 2014.
This year's event drew 260 companies that submitted a total of 1,118 brands. It is the largest among domestic competitions that cover comprehensive liquor. Of these, 449 brands received the grand prize.
By institutional sector, 107 Koreansul received the grand prize, including 50 Korean rice wine, 37 non-Korean rice wine, and 20 distilled spirits. Non-Korean rice wine included yakju and cheongju. Distilled spirits were judged in categories under 25%, 25% to under 40%, and 40% and above.
Yuja Ga09, which won first place in the Korean rice wine institutional sector, is a natural yuzu makgeolli made by Guruma Brewery, a traditional liquor brewery located in Mapo District, Seoul. It heightened its flavor by using Odaemi rice from Cheorwon and yuzu from Namhae. Yuja Ga09 won the Koreansul Korean rice wine institutional sector grand prize for the second consecutive year following last year, and this year it also received Best of 2026.
Dohan Cheongmyeongju 15 from Han Young-seok Fermentation Research Institute, which ranked first in non-Korean rice wine, is a premium yakju that modernly reinterprets a seasonal liquor drunk on Cheongmyeong day, one of the 24 solar terms. The top distilled spirit is Chusa 40 from Yesan Apple Wine Co. It is a distilled spirit made with Yesan apples, featuring the application of a European-style distillation process and aging in oak barrels.