We walked through several hutongs north of the bell tower of Beijing, before we came to this quirky sight: a museum of ancient liquor! Not something that you will find in a guide book. It was dinner time, and the place was closed. But you should mark this place in Wangzuo Hutong as a place not to be missed when you come around here.
If you ever visit, please leave a comment on this page telling me what it is. I guess I will not have the time on this trip to go back to check. Such is life!
Don't hold your breath 
Isn’t that the way it goes? Too much to see and so little time. Hope you get visit inside it someday.
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Yes indeed. Thanks.
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I guess when they closed it, they meant closed. Interesting that rather than a sign they have the entrance roped off. It’s still a fascinating place. It doesn’t surprise me that they have a museum for ancient liquor. In Wisconsin, they have a mustard museum and we visited the wonderful Spam museum in Austin, Minnesota. š
janet
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A museum of spam is a Monty Python dream! How many different kinds are there?
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A lot! They have a Monty Python spam, spam, spam display as part of the museum. It’s really a cool museum.
https://www.spam.com/museum
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Intriguing. Amazing building. More like a temple than a museum. Quirky is the word. I do hope they don’t ‘redevelop’ the area and leave at least some of the more traditional streets and buildings intact.
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At one time this area was bound towards “redevelopment”, but for now it seems to be safe
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Those are beautiful doors. I love the bottles (presumably liquor?) embedded in the walls. It’s an interesting choice for a museum, but people start museums to document their passion, so I guess it’s to be expected that someone would be passionate about liquor.
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Yes they are liquor bottles, and you still find some of those shapes if you look. I’m still curious about the content of the museum …
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I am wondering exactly what ancient liquor is! Great find!
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Since the place was closed, I’m also still wondering š
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Was it an ancient museum or a museum of ancient (maybe well-aged) liquor? š Great find either way.
janet
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Possibly the second. It was closed when I went, so I’ll have to go again some time to find out
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Wow that’s a pretty original idea for a museum. The doors are wonderful too š
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Aren’t they? I wish I could go back when it is open.
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I have just got back from a trip to China and I visited this same Hutong, I recognized the bottles in the wall. I have to say it was one of my favorite places. We loved wandering around the streets after our rickshaw ride. There were lots of abandoned bikes, people playing games or just hanging out. A few cute shops selling local art and a couple of groovy cafe/ bars. I took some really great photos there. It is a shame to think these places will be torn down.
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Yes, it looked like a very friendly and safe neighbourhood. I didn’t notice the art, either the shops came up later, or they had shut for the day when I did my walk. The real China, the one behind the neon and glitter, is so charming.
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