Laos and all of Southeast Asia are mistakenly associated more with the production of tea than with coffee, well, nothing could be more wrong. Lao coffee is a symbol of national pride like LaoBier. For an Italian, tasting a coffee outside the national borders that does not taste like a dishwasher rinse will finally be a very happy surprise!
The first plants were brought by the settlers in the early 1900s, but several errors of evaluation led to the cultivation of the plant in the northern regions which proved unsuitable. Production actually took off when plantations were moved from the north to the south of the country. After another abrupt interruption caused by the Second World War, which led to the abandonment of the region by the French, the entrepreneurs slowly resumed the development of industry in the area of the Boulevan Plateau or the Boulevan plateau. This geographical area near Paksè, in the extreme south of the country, was the site of continuous volcanic eruptions millions of years ago, which made the soil rich in minerals, extremely suitable for the growth of coffee plants.
90% of the companies that work mainly Arabica varieties, intended for export, are concentrated here, while Robusta and Iberian are used locally. In this context, both large companies and small businesses were born that collaborate with various ethnic groups trying to encourage the cultivation of coffee at the expense of opium. Laotian coffee, unlike what we are used to drinking, has an almost chocolate flavor and is usually served filtered with a condensed milk base that is addictive at the first sip.