There was a time when premium spirits in Vietnam were almost synonymous with imported brands, Western-sounding names, and countries with centuries-old distilling traditions. Vietnamese spirits, despite their deep roots in local culture and everyday life, were often viewed as traditional products rather than serious contenders on the international stage.
But that narrative is beginning to change.
A new generation of Vietnamese spirits brands is emerging with a different mindset. Rather than adopting foreign-sounding names to convey prestige, these producers are proudly embracing Vietnamese identities, working with local ingredients, and telling stories deeply connected to the country’s culture.
From traditional Vietnamese rice spirits and indigenous fruits to whisky distilled and matured in Vietnam, these producers are demonstrating that international quality and local identity do not have to be mutually exclusive.
Behind each brand lies more than commercial ambition. There are questions about culture, agriculture, and a much larger possibility: What can Vietnam contribute to the global spirits industry?
At the Vietnam Wine & Spirits Conference 2026, organized by Ngonista on September 24, the founders of Rượu Làng, Mầm Distillery, and Về Để Đi shared their journeys during the Vietnamese Spirits Masterclass.
Three different backgrounds, three distinct approaches, yet one shared conviction: Vietnam has the ingredients, creativity, and ambition to produce world-class spirits with an identity of its own.
Rượu Làng: Bringing Vietnamese Rice Spirits to the World
Born into a farming family in Vĩnh Phúc, Phoebe Trần, founder of Rượu Làng, went on to build a successful career in the technology industry, holding senior management positions at IBM, Oracle, Facebook, and Google.
Yet despite her international career achievements, one question continued to stay with her:
If Japan has sake, South Korea has soju, and China has baijiu, what spirit could represent Vietnam?
That question became the inspiration behind Rượu Làng, founded in 2024, with the ambition of introducing Vietnamese rice spirits to the world through a new identity: more contemporary, more confident, yet deeply rooted in Vietnamese culture.
Within just two years, the brand earned Double Gold and Gold awards at the SIP Awards 2025, along with medals at the London Spirits Competition and other international spirits competitions, including the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
Rượu Làng has also found its place in several fine-dining restaurants across Vietnam and is pursuing opportunities for international expansion.
Phoebe’s journey illustrates how a traditional product can be reimagined through modern brand thinking without losing its cultural authenticity.
Vietnamese rice spirits no longer need to belong only to memories of traditional gatherings. They can also become part of contemporary dining experiences and be introduced to international audiences with a renewed sense of identity.
Mầm Distillery: Telling Vietnam’s Fruit Stories Through Spirits
For Nguyễn Thùy Anh, widely known as Madame Mầm, the journey into spirits began with a deep appreciation for Vietnamese culture and agricultural heritage.
A former cultural journalist who continues to pursue research in history and culture, she became concerned about the gradual disappearance of indigenous Vietnamese fruit varieties that lacked sufficient commercial use and economic value.
Mầm Distillery was born from a vision to create a map of Vietnam’s fruits through spirits, with each product telling a story of its ingredients, origins, and the people behind them.
Today, Mầm has expanded to 21 provinces and approximately 1,000 points of sale. The brand has also received international recognition, including seven Gold and Silver awards at the Concours International de Lyon and London Spirits Competition in 2026.
Beyond these achievements lies a distinctive approach: creating greater value for local ingredients while introducing the diversity of Vietnamese agriculture through products with international market potential.
For Mầm, a bottle of spirits is more than an expression of fruit flavors. It can also preserve the stories of harvest seasons, local landscapes, and agricultural traditions worth celebrating.
Về Để Đi: Believing in the Potential of Vietnamese Whisky
Dr. Michael Rosen, founder of Về Để Đi, brings a different perspective to the potential of whisky production in Vietnam.
After years of living and working internationally, he chose Vietnam as the place to pursue his whisky-making ambitions, entering a category traditionally associated with Scotland and other established whisky-producing nations.
Driven by the belief that Vietnam can produce world-class whisky, Về Để Đi began developing its production facility in Hanoi in 2020.
Today, the distillery has approximately 1,000 oak casks dedicated to whisky maturation, reflecting a long-term commitment to product development and quality.
The brand’s journey has been recognized through several international awards:
- Best in the World at the World Whiskies Awards 2025 for Pale Ale New Make Single Malt.
- Gold at the World Whiskies Awards 2026 for Brown Ale New Make Single Malt.
- Gold at the World Whiskies Awards 2026 for one-year-aged Pale Ale Single Malt.
- Master at the Global World Whisky Masters in 2023 and 2024 for Pale Ale New Make Single Malt.
These awards represent encouraging recognition of Về Để Đi’s product development journey while broadening perceptions of what whisky production in Vietnam can achieve.
Michael Rosen’s story raises an interesting perspective: a spirits tradition may originate in a particular country, but creativity and the pursuit of quality need not be limited by geography.
The Future of Vietnamese Spirits: When Local Identity Becomes a Strength
What makes the journeys of Rượu Làng, Mầm Distillery, and Về Để Đi particularly meaningful is not simply their international awards or commercial achievements. It is their shared belief that Vietnam can create high-quality spirits through its own capabilities, ingredients, and cultural identity.
Each brand has chosen a different path. Rượu Làng is bringing traditional Vietnamese rice spirits into contemporary life. Mầm is exploring the extraordinary diversity of indigenous fruits. Về Để Đi is pursuing the ambition of producing whisky in Vietnam.
Yet behind these different approaches lies a common purpose: to create value not only for their brands but also for the communities and regions connected to their products.
This includes opportunities to develop traditional ingredients, increase the value of local agricultural products, create employment, and open new possibilities for people involved in the production supply chain.
When a Vietnamese spirits brand grows, its impact can extend beyond the business itself. It may help bring an overlooked ingredient back into the market, create new opportunities for farmers, and introduce international consumers to another dimension of Vietnamese culture.
Of course, building a globally recognized Vietnamese spirits industry remains a long-term journey. Producers must continue to address challenges in product quality, production capacity, distribution, brand development, and consumer trust.
Nevertheless, the stories shared at the Vietnam Wine & Spirits Conference 2026 reveal an encouraging shift: Vietnamese producers are becoming increasingly confident in telling their own stories through Vietnamese names, local ingredients, and values they genuinely believe in.
Perhaps a new era for Vietnamese spirits does not begin with how many brands become internationally recognized.
It begins when the people making these spirits believe that Vietnam has stories worth sharing with the world.
Phuong Maxy began her journey as a storyteller, sharing untold stories about people in the wine industry on her personal blog. She also contributes to international publications, bringing perspectives from Vietnam’s emerging wine culture to a global audience.
With over 10 years of experience in wine marketing and communications, Phuong is passionate about connecting people, culture, and knowledge through the world of food and wine.
Her work has been recognized as one of the Top 50 Influential Women and awarded Writer of the Year by Women in Wine & Spirits Award 2025.
