Mekhong Whiskey Review
By Richard Thomas
Rating: F
I encountered Mekhong Whiskey back during my backpacking days. Whiskey of any kind is sometimes hard to come by in Southeast Asia, the pocket bottle of Mekhong was cheap, and the whole point of traveling on a shoestring is to try new things, so I thought “why not?” I walked away disappointed, because Mekhong has nothing to do with whiskey whatsoever. Mekhong Whiskey was the invention of American playwright James Honzatko, who launched it as a product in 1940s Thailand, but what possessed him to label his brew a “whiskey” is beyond me. This Thai liquor is made from 95% sugar cane and molasses and 5% rice, and brewed with an undisclosed herbal mixture, so it has much more in common with rum than whiskey.
The Whiskey
Perhaps the only aspect of Mekhong Whiskey that is anything like real whiskey is the orange-amber color. On the nose it has a sharp scent of pure spirits, like something you might use to disinfect a wound or wash out a stain. The flavor is bittersweet orange and ginger, with a tinge of artificiality about it. The finish has a raw edge. Mekhong Whiskey is bottled at 35% alcohol.
Mekhong Whiskey is the liquor of choice for Thailand’s everyman, and it is never consumed neat by the locals. At a minimum, it is mixed with ice and water. More often, Mekhong whiskey is used as a base for cocktails. In that respect, it is a lot like a Thai version of Southern Comfort, and in my opinion, as a whiskey it is just as vile. As a mixer, Mekhong has its virtues. As a whiskey, it is a complete dog and should be avoided.
Average Price: A 700 ml bottle of Mekhong Whiskey retails for about $28 in the United States. In Thailand, it is much cheaper.
I got a sample bottle of Mekhong and it is one of the spirits, which are still almost full – and will never be emptied. I would say it is just awful – definitely “showcases” obvious distillation flaws.
There are only few worse spirits I tried in my life: Indian cashew fanny and Chinese white spirit are two of those…
I was told the Mekhong Whiskey is no longer made. I’ve been living in Thailand for 3 years now and I don’t see it on any shelves anywhere, except for some dusty old bottles used for decoration. It was my understanding that the old chinese guy that owned the company sold it to the makers of Sam Song and they discontinued distilling it. Is Mekhong just an export product now? Not that it will break my heart of I never taste the stuff again. The people here in Chiang Rai seem to prefer Sam Song, or the locally made rocket fuel.
Ed, I just got back from Thailand a couple months ago and I seemed to be able to find Mekhong all over the place. You can find them at Max Valu.
A customer of mine just gave me a bottle of it as a present, everyone else who has seen it thinks he’s probably trying to kill me.
Well, simply Ben VDK doesn’t know a good drop when he tastes one.
This stuff is awesome (for the price) and a rating of F is unwarranted.
I must say, while I agree that Mekhong is a pretty low-grade spirit, it isn’t nearly as horrible as the OP makes it out to be. Overall he does a good job describing its flavor, but an F rating is a bit overdramatic in my opinion. Much of what makes it seem unpalatable is the strangeness of its flavor, which is unlike anything else I have ever tasted, but it is drinkable straight. I’ve found that it’s the sort of thing that you have to be in the right mood for; you have to accept the bizarrity of its flavor, as well as have a strong stomach, as it is indeed a bit overwhelming.
Overall, I’d say it’s an interesting drink, unique, not horrible, but not great either. It’s like a weird flavor experiment gone wrong, where it can be appreciated for its uniqueness, but certainly isn’t anything outstanding.
I think a more fair rating would be a +D, as it works decently as a mixer(especially with ginger ale), and isn’t the worst thing out there.