The complete guide to Vietnamese craft beer ｜ get to know the local flavors and major breweries by taste

ベトナムのクラフトビールは、ジャスミン、パッションフルーツ、コーヒー、胡椒など、土地の素材を使った銘柄に面白さがあります。ただ、限定品や樽は入れ替わりが早く、記事にある銘柄がいつでも飲めるとは限りません。

そこでこの記事は、店名の羅列ではなく「どんな味を飲みたいか」から選べるように整理しました。代表的なブルワリーと地域差を知り、現地では当日のタップリスト、度数、サイズを確認する。これが外しにくい楽しみ方です。

先に結論：初めてなら3段階で選ぶ

• 軽く始める：ウィート、ブロンド、フルーツ系を小さいサイズで試します
• ベトナムらしさを比べる：ジャスミン、パッションフルーツ、コーヒー、胡椒など原料で選びます
• 濃いビールは最後に：IPAやインペリアルスタウトは度数を確認し、シェアや少量サイズを選びます
• 銘柄は当日確認：季節限定・売切れがあるため、記事の代表例を指名買いするより現在のタップリストを見ます

How Vietnam's craft beer came to be

First, the big picture, as a short story. Vietnam's craft scene divides broadly into a "prehistory" and a "modern wave."

• [Prehistory] Czech-style brauhaus: even before modern craft spread, Hoa Viên in Ho Chi Minh City was brewing Czech-style draft beer in-house
• [The wave of modern craft]: In January 2015, Pasteur Street poured its first pint. Heart of Darkness followed in 2016, and East West in 2017, and that's when things really took off (one of the earliest pioneers, Fuzzy Logic, was founded in 2014)

The decisive factor was ingredients unique to Vietnam. Jasmine, passion fruit, coffee, cacao, lemongrass — combining these with hops, brewers put forward a "flavor found nowhere else" rather than an imitation of the West.

Its caliber shows in international recognition too. Pasteur Street took three golds ── the most that year ── at Singapore's Asian Beer Medals in 2016. Heart of Darkness has racked up 25 international medals to date, and 7 Bridges of Da Nang in the central region was named "Country Champion" for Vietnam at the 2024 Asia Beer Championship.

A field guide to local flavors: tastes you can only drink in Vietnam

ベトナムクラフトの面白さは、地元の素材を主役にした「ご当地フレーバー」にあります。メニュー選びの手がかりになる代表的なタイプと銘柄をまとめました。限定品やレシピ変更もあるため、銘柄名より味の方向をつかむために使ってください。

The scent of flowers ── Jasmine IPA

A glass that epitomizes Vietnamese craft. An IPA that wraps hop bitterness in the scent of jasmine flowers. Not too bitter and quite fragrant, it's just right as an entry point to craft beer.

• Representative brands:Jasmine IPA（Pasteur Street）

Tropical fruit ── passion fruit / dragon fruit

A brisk, tropical sweet-and-sour type. Easy to drink even for those who aren't keen on beer's bitterness, and a good match for Vietnam's hot climate.

• Representative brands:Passion Fruit Wheatfruit-style wheat beers/ales such as (Pasteur Street)

Coffee and cacao ── rich dark beers

A glass only a coffee powerhouse like Vietnam could make. A heavy, rich stout built on Vietnamese coffee and cacao. Good after a meal in place of dessert, too.

• Representative brands:Cyclo Imperial Chocolate Stout(Pasteur Street / 13% ABV. Gold at the World Beer Cup)

Herbs and spices ── lemongrass and pepper

The herbs and spices used in cooking go straight into the beer. A cooling freshness and a sharp aroma give it a character you won't find in other countries.

• Representative brands:Lemongrass、Phu Quoc Pepper Saison(a saison using Phu Quoc island pepper / Pasteur Street)

Full-on hops ── a proper IPA

Beyond local ingredients, the classic IPAs are highly polished too. They line up glasses with firm bitterness and aroma that impress serious beer lovers.

• Kurtz’s Insane IPA(Heart of Darkness / 7.1%, an aggressive 102 IBU bitterness)
• Far East IPA(East West / a fragrant brew blending hops from around the world)

Czech-style lager — for the richness of the malt

When your palate tires after a run of IPAs, switch to a crisp lager. The pilsners and dark lagers of a Czech-style brauhaus let you savor malt sweetness and body at your leisure.

• Representative brands:Hoa Viên 's pilsner / dark lager
• Primeval Forest Pilsner(Heart of Darkness / gold at the Asia Beer Cup in Tokyo)

Oddballs — even durian and pho

Experimental, conversation-starting pours are part of the appeal of Vietnamese craft too. Opinions split, but they're worth trying once for a travel memory.

• Durian beer: Pasteur Street is known as the first brewery in Vietnam to make a durian beer
• Pho Beer: A playful brew from Hanoi's Furbrew that works in the aroma of pho

Vietnam's beer culture, different by region

Even within Vietnam, the "culture of how to drink" beer differs greatly from place to place. Where, with whom, and how you drink — that very atmosphere is what stays with you as a travel memory.

The north (Hanoi) ── the bia hoi culture that spills onto the sidewalks

The symbol of Hanoi's beer culture is "bia hoi (bia hơi)." It's preservative-free draft beer brewed the same day, light at 3–4% with little bitterness. More than 20 bia hoi spots line Ta Hien Street in the Old Quarter, and by evening little plastic stools fill the sidewalk.

Students, office workers, and travelers alike perch on low stools of the same height, chatting over a beer that costs a few tens of yen a glass. It's an open, unpretentious place to socialize, titles left at the door. On top of this everyday draft-beer culture, independent craft has clustered over the past few years, mainly in the Old Quarter. Sixty-yen street beer and carefully made craft coexisting within a short walk — that's Hanoi today.