CU Launches Handmade 'Horangi Beer' in Collaboration with Webtoon

Popular Webtoon 'Horangi Hyungnim' Partners with Platinum Beer
Pale Ale as Session IPA with Alcohol Content Reduced to Below 5%

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-sun] CU, which sparked a craft beer boom with Gom Beer (Gompyo Beer), has returned with Tiger Beer.

On the 6th, CU partnered with Naver Webtoon’s popular series Horangi Hyeongnim and Platinum Beer, famous for its ale beer, to launch the industry’s first webtoon collaboration craft beer, “Muke’s Mild IPA.” The price is 3,900 won.

Horangi Hyeongnim is a fantasy action comic serialized for five years since 2015 by artist Lee Sang-gyu on the Naver Webtoon platform.

“Muke’s Mild IPA” is a “session IPA” that maintains the rich hop aroma characteristic of IPA beer while lowering the alcohol content to below 5%. It features a smooth throat feel and emphasizes a rich citrus aroma, making it easy for pale ale beginners who are not accustomed to bitterness to enjoy without burden. To express the product concept of a mild IPA, the package design features the cute face of Muke, the baby tiger character popular in the webtoon.

CU’s planning of craft beer in collaboration with a popular webtoon reflects the growing popularity of fun consumer products that pursue enjoyment beyond simple consumption in the craft beer category. In fact, the Gom Pyo wheat beer, launched in May in partnership with Daehan Flour Mills and SevenBrew, sold out 300,000 units within a week of release and has maintained the number one spot in craft beer sales with cumulative sales exceeding 600,000 units even two months after launch.

Thanks to the popularity of Gom Pyo wheat beer, CU’s total craft beer sales last month soared sevenfold compared to the same period last year, despite the historically long rainy season and cool weather.

In particular, webtoons are a representative snack culture favored by the main craft beer purchasing demographic of people in their 20s and 30s. CU’s analysis of big data over the past month showed that social network service (SNS) buzz mentioning both webtoons and beer increased by 22.4% compared to the same period last year.

Meanwhile, to commemorate the launch of Muke’s Mild IPA, CU is offering a 23% discount to customers who purchase one can of the product throughout August, along with a promotion of four cans for 10,000 won.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.