Korean drinks to buy online: Milkis, Chilsung Cider and more

Chilsung Cider is Korea's long-running clear lemon-lime soda. The JoongAng Daily reports that the first bottle was made on May 9, 1950, and that the name first meant seven names, for the seven founders with different surnames, before the second syllable was changed to mean stars. Its recipe mixes clean water, natural flavorings, sugar and citric acid, and in the 1980s its ads promised no color, no caffeine and no artificial flavorings. Lotte Chilsung's own brand history remembers the 1960s, when there was little to drink and a bottle of cider felt like a treat, and the 1970s, when it cooled down people working through Korea's industrial boom.

Milkis came much later. Lotte Chilsung dates it to 1989, starting with an ad in which actor Chow Yun-fat says 'Saranghaeyo Milkis', I love you, Milkis. It's a soda made with milk, and the company added Milkis Zero in 2023.

In Korea both come in many sizes. Lotte Chilsung lists Chilsung Cider in cans from 190 ml to 355 ml and in bottles up to 2 liters, and Milkis in cans and plastic bottles up to 1.5 liters. The cans on Amazon are the 250 ml size.

Binggrae's banana milk launched in 1974, and Binggrae says its round bottle was designed after the full, rounded shape of a Korean moon jar. We couldn't confirm a shelf-stable banana version on Amazon to link right now, so it isn't in the picks.

What ships easily are Binggrae's small 200 ml cartons. The strawberry cartons are ultra-high-temperature pasteurized, and the coffee cartons' listing says they need no refrigeration until opened. Chill them before drinking, and keep them in the fridge once opened.

OKF, founded in 1997, says its Aloe Vera King is sold in 180 countries. It's a mildly sweet drink in a tall bottle; keep it somewhere cool and dry, and refrigerate it after opening, as the label says.

Misugaru is the traditional option; Damtuh's listing calls it a drink Korean households have poured for generations. It's a powder of roasted, finely milled grains that you shake into water or milk, warm in the morning or over ice in summer, as Damtuh's listing suggests. Damtuh's sticks hold 20 g each, so there's nothing to measure. If you like grain flavors, the roasted barley and corn teas in our Korean teas guide are close cousins.

Two more Lotte Chilsung drinks are worth trying if you visit Korea. Lotte Chilsung's Let's Be canned coffee started with Let's Be Mild Coffee in 1991 and comes in small 175 ml cans, and its Hot6 energy drink launched in 2010. We couldn't find either on Amazon with a listing we could confirm as of October 2026, so they aren't in the picks.

For Korean coffee at home, Maxim coffee mix sticks are in our Korean teas and drinks guide, along with canned sikhye, the sweet rice drink.

For a movie night or a party, the sodas are the easy choice: Chilsung Cider for something clean and lemony, Milkis for something creamy. Both come in small cans, so everyone can try one. Canned sodas are a fixture in Korea's PC bang gaming rooms too, where the JoongAng Daily notes that menus also offer coffee and tea.

For lunch bags and kids, the 200 ml milk cartons are the right size and keep in the cupboard until the morning you pack them. For breakfast, shake a stick of misugaru into cold milk. On a hot afternoon, reach for a chilled bottle of the aloe drink.

If you are putting together a Korean snack box, add a couple of drinks to it. Our Korean snacks and sweets guides cover the food side.

Labels change, so read the package you get. This is what the makers or the store labels said as of October 2026.