vietnamese beer

[mongo_jones]

at last night's colorado egullet dinner at the excellent da-lat in denver a bunch of us had a vietnamese beer called export 33 or something like that--i'd have remembered the name but i also made the mistake of eating whole a raw bird chilli and many of my memories have been wiped. but that is neither here nor there. what i do remember is that i liked the beer, that it was a lager, and that it was a little sweetish. anyone ever drink this or any other vietnamese beer? are these common characteristics?

[mrbigjas]

33 is the standard beer in Vietnamese restaurants in the U.S., in the same way that Singha is the standard beer in Thai restaurants and Tsingtao is the standard in Chinese places.

[Andrea Nguyen]

Yup, 33 beer for a long time has been the Vietnamese export beer. It's not fully representative of Viet beers. In fact, if you travel in Vietnam, there's lots of beer to drink from. Some is fresh and airy -- perfect thirst quenchers. Some are heavier and more flavorful. By and large, they're not as dry as some of the other Asian beers. A little heavier in taste are Tiger and Halida -- my favorites.

I think that there's a Vietnamese style beer being brewed out of Gilroy, California. However, they call it an ale and not a lager. When I find out more, I'll let you know...

Andrea

[Laksa]

A little heavier in taste are Tiger and Halida -- my favorites.

Is that the same Tiger beer from Singapore, part-owned by Heineken?

[mongo_jones]

Yup, 33 beer for a long time has been the Vietnamese export beer. It's not fully representative of Viet beers. In fact, if you travel in Vietnam, there's lots of beer to drink from. Some is fresh and airy -- perfect thirst quenchers. Some are heavier and more flavorful. By and large, they're not as dry as some of the other Asian beers. A little heavier in taste are Tiger and Halida -- my favorites.

I think that there's a Vietnamese style beer being brewed out of Gilroy, California. However, they call it an ale and not a lager. When I find out more, I'll let you know...

Andrea

thanks andrea. there seems to be a common thread among all asian beers: variations on the lager theme. it is the same in india--a bunch of flavorful lagers with differing levels of alcoholic content (with beers with names like "bullet", "guru" and "thunderbolt" at the high end).

i have some other questions for you about vietnamese food, but i'll ask them on the "elsewhere in asia/pacific" forum.

[phaelon56]

Ironic that this topic should appear now... a few weks too late for me. I can distinctly recall drinking "33" Export beer at a neighborhood bar back in the late 1970's and really enjoying it. The finish was rather dry - a bit like what are now called dry beers, I imagine (I'm just guessing as I stopped drinking alcohol long befotre "dry" beer was introduced).

The "33" that we were getting back then was brewed in a Parisian suburb by a subsidiary of Heineken but it was definitely a French beer. I tried in vain to find some a few weeks ago for a French themed dinner (we have a mix of beer drinkers, wine drinkers and non-drinkers in the group). The descriptiosn I've read here and elsewhere of the Vietnames "33" indicate that it doesn't match up to the French product. I think that in this age of robust and flavorful microbrews and craft beers, the original French "33" might seem a buit tame but the subtlety and the dry finish were very appealing at the time as it was so much different than the other products available to me back then.

[Andrea Nguyen]

Is that the same Tiger beer from Singapore, part-owned by Heineken?

I believe it is. There's been a pretty agressive push to spread Tiger beer throughout Asia. It's stronger tasting (I'm not a major beer expert) than Saigon or Beer 33. Then there's Halida and Huda, which are more like Tiger but not as intense. When it's hot and humid, Tiger beer can put you over the top too quickly, so some of the lighter style beers may be better.

As for the Viet style beer being made in Gilroy, California, it's called Chau Tien. I got the pale ale and it's very good but not a lager. Apparently it was the idea of a Vietnamese man but he has other folks brew it for him. Right now, it's brewed by Coast Range Brewing Company in Gilroy. Coast Range is quite reputable.

Now I'm really curious and will do just a little more investigation!

Andrea

[BonVivant]

'33' is the most pleasant, 'Saigon' is okay, and the rest is terrible. the most memorable beer is the fresh kind.

btw, hello fellow beer fans. and no, it's not 'too blokey'! :) [my very first response and i choose the beer section...heheh]

[Susan in FL]

btw, hello fellow beer fans.  and no, it's not 'too blokey'! :)  [my very first response and i choose the beer section...heheh]

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