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Thursday, 11 June 2026

Beer in Vietnam

My mate Charles Guerrier told me that Vietnam was the best place for beer in Southeast Asia. And Saigon in particular. So I was very optimistic of the beer I would find there.

Which wasn't something I felt in Bangkok. Admittedly, I wasn't really hanging out in beer places. And the choice was limited to the local Lager or stuff imported from Europe. I went for the former. As what's the point in travelling thousands of miles and drinkinmg beer you can get at home?

As I was stopping slap bang in the centre of Saigon, there were beery options close to my hotel. I wasn't going to miss out on those.

The first place I tried was East West Brewing. A brewpub. Sort of. As, due to council restrictions, it no longer brews on site. Despite the shiny equipment at the back. Which is a shame.

Inside East West. In the foreground are high tables, behind that, comfortable chairs and settees. In the middle ground are several long tables, with diners at two of them. In the background are a shiny stainless steel brewhouse and fermenting vessels.

East West's beers, wherever they might be brewed, are still pretty good. All very much in mainstream modern styles: Pale Ale, IPA, Hefeweize, Witbier, Lager, Pilsner, Vanilla Porter, Imperial Stout, Belgian Dark and Belgian Blonde. (At least, that's what they had on draught when I was there. I'm sure that it varies somewhat.) A good spread of styles, strengths and colours. Not just twenty types of fucking IPA.

Any guesses what I went for? Imperial Stout, obviously.

I met with Nhi Mai, brewer at East West. A smart young woman, who explained some of the vagaries of brewing Saigon. Such as the council forbidding brewing in the city centre on account of the waste water.

Inside Pasteur Street. There's a row of tables to the leftwith large windows behind them. In the background is a wall with three beer posters. A few men are sitting at tables. Lots of small Vietnamese flags hang from the ceiling.

We shared a few beers in both East West and another nearby former brewpub, Pasteur Street, conveniently just 150 metres further along the same street. They also brew quite a few typical styles: Lager, Blonde Ale, Irish Stout, Pale Ale, Jasmine Amber, Session IPA, Pomelo IPA, Jasmine IPA, Double Jasmine IPA, and Imperial Chocolate Stout. Rather more IPA-heavy than East West.

What did I choose? No, it wasn't the Imperial Stout. I was being sensible and just had a Double Jasmine IPA, at a mere 8.5%. (I did, however, try the Imperial Stout when I returned the next day.)

A tulip pint of IPA sitting on a table. In the background there's a street with several figures and a parked scooter.

The beers from both breweries were all technically good and pretty decent examples of the styles. Better than some of the beers I've had in Holland or the USA, for example. 

I was pretty impressed. And I only scratched the surface. Ho Chi Minh has many more breweries and beer bars. I can heartily recommend it.


East West Brewing
181 Lý Tự Trọng, 
Bến Thành, 
Hồ Chí Minh.
https://eastwestbrewing.vn/taproom/ho-chi-minh


Pasteur Street Craft Beer
112 Lý Tự Trọng, 
Hồ Chí Minh.
https://pasteurstreet.com/
 

A companion video:

 

 

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