“5 Times More Hops” CU Launches Industry-First Super Premium Beer Priced at 6,900 Won

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] CU announced on the 28th that it will be the first in the industry to launch "super premium beer."

Super premium beer is a product that maximizes the unique aroma and flavor of beer by increasing the hops, one of the main ingredients of beer, up to five times. Because it must be refrigerated during distribution and storage to maintain quality, it has only been sold in small quantities at bottle shops or breweries until now.

The super premium beers introduced by CU include three New England IPAs (Lifesurfing IPA, First Love IPA, Hopsplash IPA) and one Imperial Stout (Heukbaek Imperial Stout), carefully selected products that have recently become popular on social networking services (SNS) among super premium beers.

All four types are priced at 6,900 won, making them the most expensive canned beers of the same volume sold at CU. While beer is generally a room temperature product, super premium beer, which requires freshness, is supplied through a cold logistics infrastructure that distributes milk and convenience foods.

New England IPA differs from regular IPA in that it has a darker color and a heavier taste with rich fruity aromas, earning it the nickname "fruit juice beer." Since it is unfiltered and contains live yeast, it offers a more diverse flavor experience than traditional IPAs that undergo complete filtering.

Lifesurfing IPA is a beer aimed at summer, characterized by tropical fruit aromas using American Citra hops, Simcoe hops, and Australian Galaxy hops that give a peach scent. Overall, it is sweet and refreshing, making it easy to enjoy even for those who find heavy beer flavors burdensome.

First Love IPA and Hopsplash IPA also follow the New England IPA style and are flagship products of Amazing Brewery and Playground Brewery, respectively. Heukbaek Imperial Stout features a subtle coffee aroma and a savory sweetness reminiscent of a latte. Despite its relatively high alcohol content of 10%, it has no harsh scent and a smooth finish.

Considering the recent rise in consumer expectations for convenience store beer, CU decided to introduce super premium beer. In fact, CU's sales of craft beer from January to July 25 this year increased by 80.4% compared to the previous year, and the share of craft beer in total beer sales has grown significantly from 0.8% in 2018 to 2.4% in 2019, 6.2% in 2020, and 15.5% in 2021. This year, it is approaching 20%.

Lee Seungtaek, MD of the Beverage and Food Team at BGF Retail, said, "CU has expanded the base of convenience store craft beer by being the first to introduce super premium beer, which was previously difficult to handle, through cold chain delivery. We plan to continuously expand differentiated products unique to CU by collaborating with various brands and breweries in the future."

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