Objective : To investigate the association between serum gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) and incident hypertension according to alcohol consumption in Korean adults. Methods : This study included 4859 normotensive adults (mean age 44 years) within normal range of serum GGT levels at baseline who were followed-up for three years. Subjects were divided into four groups according to the quartile of serum GGT levels at baseline. Results : The overall incidence of developing hypertension was 8.1%: 6.1 % in non-drinkers and 9.3% in drinkers. Drinkers group showed significantly higher serum GGT level than non-drinkers group(p<0.001). Also, incident hypertension group showed significantly higher baseline serum GGT level, compared with no incident hypertension group, independent of alcohol consumption(p<0.001). In a logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, sex, life style factors(alcohol, smoking, and physical activity), baseline systolic blood pressure(SBP), traditional cardiovascular risk factors(glucose, uric acid, and total cholesterol), and BMI, the odds ratio(ORs) for incident hypertension in drinkers group increased with increasing quartiles of GGT(p for trend=0.015); however, there was no association between serum GGT level and incident hypertension in non-drinkers group(p for trend=0.931). Moreover, in the multivariate regression model, the highest quartile in only drinkers group was at significantly higher odds ratio(OR) for incident hypertension(OR[95% CI], 2.710[1.357-5.411]), compared with the lowest quartile. Conclusions : These results indicate that elevated serum GGT levels within normal range are more associated with incident hypertension, especially in drinkers among Korean adults.