The first brewery in China
Harbin Brewery dates back to 1900, when Jan Wróblewski, an entrepreneur from the Russian Empire of Polish origin, founded a brewery in Harbin to supply the workers building the Trans-Manchurian Railway. It is considered the oldest brewery in China.
A turbulent century
The brewery changed name and hands many times: it was renamed in 1908, came under joint Chinese and Czech control in 1932, was run by Japanese and then Soviet managers, and after 1949 became the state-owned Harbin Brewery. In 1959, during years of famine, it was the first in China to brew beer with corn instead of rice.
Today
In 2004, after a bidding war with SABMiller, Anheuser-Busch (now AB InBev) took control of Harbin Brewery. Harbin is one of the best-selling beer brands in the world and a leading brewer of northeast China.