Whisky Village in Luang Prabang, Laos

Whisky village or Ban Xang Hai village in Luang Prabang is one of the attractions when visiting the Pak Ou Caves.
Meaning, there are a total of 3 main attractions in this village: whisky making, Silk Weaving and Sa Paper Making.
Ban Xang Hai or Lek means Jar Maker Village in Lao. However, most people would call this place Whisky Village due to the star attraction of local Lao whisky or Lao Lao, which is made and sold here.
The beauty about this moonshine is that they marry the whisky with all kinds of creepy crawlies, from scorpions, geckos, centipedes and snakes.
On your journey to the Pak Ou Caves, the longboat or tour bus will stop you here to visit this interesting village that is also well known for its Sa Papermaking and its woven silk craft.
On arriving at the great Mekong River banks, you proceed to the Whisky Village via a bamboo jetty and then up to the village entrance. The first thing that greets you will be the whisky station.
Here you will see a display of the famous self-made Lao Lao whisky bottles put in intricately weaved casings. The person in charge will invite you to test the famous Lao Lao whiskey in a small shot glass.
Well, me being the occasional drinker, was first in line to try this local Lao Lao. I think from the picture above, you can tell how powerful it was.
If I lit a lighter in front of my mouth, I would probably be able to blow flames! Serious, this was some potent stuff! Much stronger than most whiskies I have tasted in my life.
Then a demonstration on how the Lao Lao whisky is made there. A traditional technique involves an old drum, some pipes here and there, a wooden fire under the drum, and an old jar’s outlet pipe.
I ain’t no rocket scientist, but that looks lethal. Apparently, the whisky is distilled to about 55% proof.
Anyway, as you move on inside, you start to see the real stuff being sold on open tables outside the homes cum shops. Bottles of snake wine or critter wines are available from your average Coke bottle size to the one-litre bottle.
Stuffed with critters and ginseng, probably some other herbs, these look really odd. Gross to some people, exciting to others, like me.
Then only you start to see the touristy stuff being sold. Seems they pay attention to the Lao Lao instead of their silk weaving and other handicraft. Maybe it is because the foreigner enjoys drinking?
Anyway, a variety of houses in the village are selling traditional handwoven Lao silk. Made by the locals there, they are priced pretty reasonably and are great souvenirs to get. The quality of the silk there is pretty impressive too.
Walking around the village, I came across a local Lao lady weaving a piece of silk. I asked her how long it takes to make one piece, and she told me that depending on the design, it could be from 3 days to a month. So prices are based on the design.
The more details, the more expensive. You can bargain with them too, but be reasonable, please. They work really hard, from what I observed.
I must say that the Lao people are not persuasive, meaning they do not force you to buy their goods. Asking them how much and then moving along, they would simply smile at you.
Several homes converted into shops sell these lovely woven silk materials, which are made into sarongs to table runners or even as wall decorations. Again, great souvenirs if you plan to get some.
Something caught my eye as I was walking around the village; a little Lao girl was also attempting to sell toy dolls.
At the Whisky Village, there is also a small temple with a few monks. Nothing special as it is for the locals at the village.
Exploring deeper into the Whisky Village, I passed many homes, some about to fall apart a mostly all wooden and run down.
When you get to the main village road, you will see a sign that welcomes you to Xang Khong Posa, also known as the Paper Village.
From the Sa Paper, cards, photo albums, lanterns, writing paper and papercrafts are made. Even umbrellas and lampshades are made from the amazing Sa Paper.
You can see that this village is producing a lot of it and most of it is sent to the main town of Luang Prabang.
Among other items being sold at the Whisky Village, local Lao handicraft items like handcrafted puppets and other antiques.
But be careful about the antiques as some seem to be reproductions from China, made to look old.
Here are some tips about Getting to the Whiskey, Silk, Paper Village.
- The visit is usually included in your Pak Ou Caves trip via longboat.
- Cost – There is no extra charge for entering this village.
- Time – About 20-30 minutes if you take the boat.
- Attractions – As mentioned above.
- An alternative to getting here – You can hire a tuk-tuk and come by yourself and explore this place. This would give you much more time in the village.
that the boat you came in will wait for you at the banks, so you need to
get back there.
Everyone was waiting
for me as I totally got carried away at the Whisky Village in Luang Prabang, Laos. I am sure you will too when you visit this interesting place.
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