Trail Brew
Juyongguan Great Wall
Yanjing Beer 10°P –Beijing Yanjing Brewery

Between September 15th to 24th 2018 my Wife and I took a trip of a lifetime to China. We started out trip in Beijing and on September 16th we headed to the Great Wall of China. We headed to the Juyongguan Great Wall portion of the wall around 60km out of the Chinese Capital Beijing. When it comes to transportation to this part of the wall you are best off to just book a tour as driving in China is insane. Road lines are not followed and street lights are just a suggestion especially for bikes.

From the parking lot you have to head to the ticket booth first.

From there you walk up to the actual wall gate to get into the plaza that will allow you up onto the wall. In the past the whole loop of this portion of the wall was open to traverse but at this time only the Western portion is open. Some other areas of the wall around China are flatter but this portion is a star master. All told you only go 2km round trip with a gain of elevation of 300m (All approximate according to Google Earth). Again as per Google Earth the average slope of the hike was 26% with a max slope of 57%. The main plaza has coffee shops, food options and a gift shop.

Starting right away the stairs head up fast! You start this portion of the wall around Tower 7. These next photos go up to Tower 9.

The wall continues to go up steeply. There really is no relenting.

The top Tower for this trip is Tower 12 as the loop is currently closed as I mentioned. These photos are from the top at Tower 12. The last few are then of the decent down the wall.

But what is a hike or a walk on the Great Wall of China without a beer? Luckily in one of the towers I think Tower 10 they had a little shop with drinks, snacks and trinkets. As I decided to walk out without anything they mentioned that they had beer so I turned back in to get one.

I then headed back down the hill milking my beer all the way to the bottom. When it was all said and done our group of 40 only had 6 people make it to the top and I made it to the top with two other people. I also had a second beer at the bottom of the trail while we waited for some stragglers.

In the end the hike up the Great Wall of China is not something I will forget soon. There are trips you take in your life time that change how you look at the world. This was one of them to be sure. But while I am a craft beer person through and through some times a garbage beer ends up being amazing.

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The Yanjing Beer 10°P is brewed by Beijing Yanjing Brewery based out of Beijing China. The beer was designated as the official beer to be served at state banquets in the Great Hall of the People in 1995. The beer pours a golden colour with a small white head. The aroma consists of grain, rice, grassy hops and a sweetness. The flavour is of rice, mild grains, sweetness, herbal hops and only a small hint of bitterness. The alcohol content comes in at 3.6%. Standing on the Great Wall of China this beer was amazing. It is a low quality cheap lager but the situation made it great. This is the first time in my adult life that a cheap macro lager actually hit the spot but it was due to the view and situation and nothing to do with the flavour.

Commercial Description: Yanjing Beer, refreshing and pleasant. Selected high-quality barley, 300 meters deep underground pollution-free mineral water, pure quality hops, high-fermentation yeast, spare no effort to lead the technology.

Disclaimer: Drinking while excising and hiking can be dangerous and can put you in serious danger or lead to your death. These posts do not recommend that you drink while you hike but if you decide too make sure to be a responsible adult.