Beer Styles

What beer style is Bia hơi? It's a light, pale draft beer from northern Vietnam. It's straw-yellow to golden, tastes mild and slightly sweet, has barely any bitterness, and carries only a thin head. It isn't defined as a style with its own standard. The profile therefore shows the values of a comparable style: American Lager, likewise pale, lean, and bottom-fermented.

How much alcohol does Bia hơi have? When mentioned, the figure is usually around 4.1 to 4.3 percent. That's roughly the same as a session beer or a light Helles. The exact figure, however, is whatever the brewery states for its batch.

The second group consists of Habeco's bottled beers, such as Bia Hà Nội and Trúc Bạch. They are pasteurized, shelf-stable, and resemble what's known internationally as pale lager. The profile lists the values of a comparable style here, International Pale Lager. These figures, too, are a reference point and not a recipe.

What sets Hà Nội apart from Saigon? Southern Vietnam has its own brewery in Sài Gòn and its own brands. Saigon Beer and Bia 333 belong to Sabeco, the southern counterpart to Habeco. Habeco represents the north, and it's only there that the daily ritual of Bia hơi is part of everyday life.

Neither has much in common with a Pils. A German Pils is noticeably more bitter and hop-forward, while a Bia hơi is soft and lean. Put the two side by side, and you'll taste that it's not strength that counts here, but thirst at the end of a hot day.