Snake wine (rượu rắn in Vietnamese) is an alcoholic beverage that includes a whole venomous snake in the bottle. It originated in Vietnam and can be found around Southeast Asia. The snakes, preferably venomous ones, are not usually preserved for their meat but to have the snake poison dissolved in the liquor. However, the snake venom is denatured by the ethanol; its proteins are unfolded and therefore inactivated.
To prepare this incredible beverage a cobra snake or some scorpions are put into a bottle fulfilled with transparent rice wine liquor and some herbs are added before the drink is left to ferment for months. The venomous cobra snake used to make Snake wine is preserved to have the snake poison dissolved in the rice wine, but because snake venoms are protein-based they are inactivated by the denaturing effects of ethanol, and no more dangerous, but this makes a healthy liquor with many health benefits.
Many types of snake drinks can be found all across Asia, but the most famous one and the only original one is the one found in Vietnam, Thailand, and Laos, the famous Snake wine that you can only find online on our website.
It originated in Vietnam and spread throughout the region of Southeast Asia and Southern China. Snakes are widely believed to possess medicinal qualities and the wine is often advertised to cure everything from farsightedness to hair loss, as well as to increase sexual performance. However, many of these claims are likely exaggerated to attract buyers. It is illegal to import snake wine to many countries including the United States because the cobras and other snakes killed in the production are often endangered species.
It is argued that it was originated in China by the Cantonese.
