Vientiane, Laos: Home of BeerLao

We are currently in Vientiane the capitol of Laos, but more importantly (to me) the home of BeerLao. Most people have never heard of BeerLao but it is widely accepted (by me) to be the best beer in Asia. It's better than Tsing Tao (Qing Dao, China), Tiger (Singapore), and every Japanese beer I have ever had (Asahi, Soporo, etc.) To attest to the quality of this beer, in 2002 Carlsberg bought a 25% share of BeerLao. Carlsberg experts were brought in to "improve" the beer but but were surprised to find that BeerLao consistently won blind taste tests against foreign beers. [1]

Yesterday I was able to visit the Beerlao Brewery. I got a free sample (two, really, since Jes always gives hers to me and that alone is reason to be married) and went on the 15 minute tour of the brewery. We were only walked through the bottling and packaging area and only got to see the outside of the building where the brewing actually takes place. However this tour was unlike any other brewery tour I have ever been on and I've been on a few (Coors, Miller, Anheiser Busch, Schells). For this tour we were able to walk through the actual factory. Nothing was behind glass. There was no special visitor walkway. In fact, I could have picked a bottle right off the conveyor belt. I was a cool experience but sadly no photos were allowed inside.

BeerLao is available in some parts of the U.S. but I have never seen it anywhere but Asia. If you do happen to see it, give it a try. I would prefer it to any macrobrew in the U.S. any day.

There are more interesting things to say about BeerLao and Vientiane for that matter but its time for supper and undoubtedly another cool refreshing BeerLao. [2]



[1] Source: Williams, China & et al. Lonely Planet: Southeast Asia. 12th Ed. 2004.
[2] This has not been paid for by the PDR of Lao, Beerlao, or its affiliates.