Lao-Lao

Lao-Khamu men drinking lao-hai from an earthenware jar. Water is added to the jar to maintain the liquid level as the alcohol is sipped.

Lao-Lao (Lao: ເຫລົ້າລາວ) is a Laotian rice whisky produced in Laos. Along with Beer Lao, lao-Lao is a staple for the people of Laos. Contrary to what the romanized transcription would make one believe, the name lao-Lao is not the same word repeated twice, but actually two different words pronounced with different tones: The first, ເຫລົ້າ, means "alcohol" and is pronounced with a low-falling tone (in the standard dialect), while the second, ລາວ, means Laotian ("Lao") and is pronounced with a high(-rising) tone.

Although lao-lao is traditionally drunk neat, a cocktail that is rising in popularity is the "Pygmy Slow Lorange", named after the Pygmy Slow Loris, a species endemic to Laos. Various flavoured lao-laos are made by macerating such additives as honey or scorpions. It is women who often distil Lao-laoy and sell it as a source of income locally, often being their second major income.

A less powerful version of lao-lao, called lao-hai, is especially popular with the Khamu ethnic group in Laos, and is drunk from large communal earthenware pots (hai) through long bamboo straws.

See also

• Rượu cần, a similar form of wine drunk in Vietnam
• Rice wine
• Rice baijiu
• Sato (rice wine) Isan version

External links

• Lao-Lao Rice Whisky
• Recipe for Laolao
• Description of meal with Lao-Lao