Laos may not have the craft beer density of Bangkok or Singapore, but what it lacks in volume it makes up for in pioneering spirit. Vientiane, the country's quiet, unhurried capital strung along the Mekong River, is home to a small cluster of independent breweries that have been making their own beers since the mid-2010s β operating alongside the ubiquitous Beerlao in a market that is only just beginning to discover what local craft brewing can look like. The scene is small enough to cover in a day but serious enough to reward the curious beer traveller who makes the time to seek it out.