LAODI Distillery Visit, Part 3: The Wind President Obama Brought — How Lao Rum Became the Nation’s Official Gift

2026.10.05

In short: in 2016, President Obama became the first sitting US president to visit Laos, for the ASEAN summit in Vientiane. The Lao government invited LAODI, the rum distillery founded by Japanese entrepreneur Ikuzo Inoue, to exhibit as a national industry — and LAODI became an official gift for foreign guests, appeared in the rum magazine Rum Porter, and went on to Paris and London. Part 3 of my LAODI report by Mika Tanimoto, owner of Bar Little Happiness in Hiroshima, Japan.

Please read from Part 1!

Part 1: a reunion, a feast, and the beginning of a “miracle story”

Part 2: the “miracle licence” won in one week

A stage staked on national prestige, and a door to the world

In the gentle afternoon light at the distillery, Mr. Inoue fondly told us about a “miracle-like event” that happened in 2016.

It happened just as the old organisation had been dissolved and LAODI was starting out anew.

A turning point in history: the first visit to Laos by a US president

In 2016, the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) summit was held in Vientiane, the capital of Laos.

That year became historic for Laos — and for LAODI.

Because President Obama made an official visit to Laos, the first sitting US president ever to do so.

During the Vietnam War, Laos was in fact bombed even more heavily than Vietnam.

Many unexploded bombs still remain in the country, and it is said it will take another 200 years to clear them all. The scars of war run deep.

Now an American president was coming to a country with that history.

It was a moment filled with indescribable tension and expectation for the whole nation.

A sudden phone call and an “official offer”

Just a few weeks before the summit, Mr. Inoue received a phone call from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

It was a sudden request: “Please set up a booth.”

Mr. Inoue was taken aback by such a sudden offer at first, but then he was contacted directly by the Minister of Foreign Affairs as well.

It was a proud turning point: the Lao government had officially recognised LAODI as “an industry that represents the nation.”

(Early LAODI rum aged in clay jars, which Mr. Inoue calls “HISTORY.”)

Iron-clad security, and an out-of-place (?) Japanese shout

The summit venue was wrapped in an unusual atmosphere.

The latest detectors brought from America were lined up, and ID cards were strictly checked.

Inside the building, mobile phone signals were completely blocked to prevent remote-controlled explosions.

Even the press was strictly limited — not even NHK could get in. The hushed venue held only insiders: truly a space for “the chosen few.”

In the middle of all this, Japan’s Prime Minister Abe appeared.

Overwhelmed with emotion — and plain curiosity — a staff member at the LAODI booth couldn’t help shouting:

“Prime Minister!!”

Cheering as if at a football stadium, the area was thrown into commotion.

The prime minister’s aides and embassy officials who were with Mr. Abe rushed over, their faces pale.

“Why is an ordinary Japanese person here?!”

To them, the only Japanese people at this event should have been the government officials and diplomats Mr. Abe had brought.

But the people there were the LAODI team, officially invited by the Lao government.

They had a good laugh about it afterwards, but this scene came to symbolise how special LAODI’s position was that day — standing there as a representative of Laos.

Applause as “the nation’s representative gift”

After the summit, everything around LAODI changed dramatically.

Having caught the eye of leaders and ministers from many countries, its reputation as “the spirit that represents the nation” rose at once.

After that, official orders came in from the Lao government, and LAODI was chosen as an “official gift” for foreign guests.

(At the airport, LAODI products took up much of the souvenir shelves.)

From Hiroshima to Paris, and on to the world

Hearing the buzz, Rum Porter, the world’s only rum magazine, came to cover LAODI, and a photo of Mr. Inoue holding sugar cane graced its pages.

That led to orders arriving by email from all over the world.

Later, invited by a French agent, LAODI went on to major trade shows in Europe, such as Paris and London.

Together with Mr. Sihata, Mr. Inoue rushed around European cities carrying heavy sample bottles, changing between unfamiliar subway lines and staying in a cramped Airbnb attic.

Mr. Inoue, with his true partner, is carrying the wind of Laos to the whole world.

In the final part, I want to touch on why Mr. Inoue keeps making rum through so many hardships — the “formative experience” and “philosophy” deep in his heart.

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Every encounter is meant to be. Welcome to the world of Rum&Whisky.

[A note from Tanimoto] This article about LAODI distillery is based on my own visit, but it also includes some of my personal thoughts and interpretations. Please enjoy it as the musings of one rum lover.

“Whisky and rum taste even better when you touch the hearts of the people who make them.”