Dao Distillery’s traditional Rượu Đế Viet line begins with organic jasmine rice and undergoes a hybrid fermentation, using half the amount of enzymes and supplementing it with koji to create the traditional flavors. Rượu Đế Viet is released in three expressions: Original, Premium, and Reserved.
To prepare the Original, the distillery bypasses the column in distillation and runs a simple pot still, distilling deeper into the tails to get a thick, umami-rich spirit that’s 45% ABV.
“Our Premium product is a very clean product, and very good, but then there’s certain flavors being removed that maybe some people like,” says Dao, explaining that just as some people prefer the funk of high-ester rums over cleaner rums, the Original expression of the line offers a more traditional flavor profile.
The other two expressions of Rượu Đế Viet are distilled through a seven-plate column for more rectification. The Rượu Đế Viet Reserved is run through the still once and bottled at 50% ABV. Rượu Đế Viet Premium sees a stripping run with just the pot and a second distillation using the column and is released at 45% ABV. These spirits have a cleaner flavor, more appealing to people used to more highly rectified spirits.
Then there’s the Rượu Đế Cali. It’s Dao’s homage to his adopted homeland, a California version of rượu đế. It begins with Calrose rice, converting the starches entirely with enzymes in the Western style and fermenting with a wine yeast sourced out of San Diego. It is released in two strengths: Premium (40% ABV) and Reserved (50% ABV).
In addition, Dao Distillery releases four other spirits: vodka, cherry brandy, Rượu Đế Viet Whiskey (rượu đế aged lightly in used barrels), and a very special bottling, a limited-edition 50th Year Journey of Rượu Đế Viet. This limited-edition bottling, which commemorates a half-century of Vietnamese migration to the United States, features a boat on its label. It represents the life-or-death boat journey Dao’s father piloted that ultimately brought the family to the United States.
