A local distillery, once linked to the tragic methanol poisoning of two teenage girls at a Laos hostel, has announced that it has been legally exonerated.
Holly Morton-Bowles and Bianca Jones, both 19, were best friends from Melbourne who tragically lost their lives while vacationing in Vang Vieng, a town north of Laos’ capital, Vientiane, in November 2024.
The two teens were part of a group of six international tourists staying at Nana Backpacker’s Hostel who died after consuming drinks tainted with methanol during a happy hour event.
The distillery, initially suspected in the poisonings, now asserts its innocence, highlighting that no legal proceedings are anticipated against it.
Keo Sinorlai, the owner’s niece, informed The Age on Saturday that the business has been cleared following tests related to the incident.
“I know people died in Vang Vieng. But if it was only this (the product) that they were drinking, they would not have died,” she stated.
‘This business has been going on for 30 years.’
Ms Sinorlai said her ‘drunk’ husband would have been the first person to suffer if the product was tainted with methanol, a by-product of brewing drinkable alcohol.
Bianca Jones and Holly Morton-Bowles (pictured) died while holidaying in Vang Vieng, north of the Laotian capital, Vientiane, in November 2024
The Melbourne teens were among six foreign tourists staying at Nana Backpacker’s Hostel
The method Ms Sinorlai’s uncle uses to produce their drinks, she said, is to purchase 90 per cent ethanol from a pharmacy for the equivalent of about $4.
It is then diluted with water and flavourings until it is 40 per cent alcohol volume, and is produced as Tiger brand vodka and whisky.
Ms Sinorlai did not offer any theories to The Age regarding the cause of the deaths. The Vang Vieng distributor for Tiger stated the brand was available in many places.
There have so far only been reports that people drinking at Nana Backpacker’s Hostel fell sick.
Ms Sinorlai said her uncle’s distillery also remains closed, but cited his serious health problems as the reason.
Tiger vodka and whisky have been banned in Laos since the deadly poisonings.
Prior to the ban, Tiger vodka and whisky were widely available in stores across the country for about $2.50 a bottle.
The Australian government’s Smartraveller website still cautions Australians against drinking Tiger-branded vodka and whisky.
A local distillery said it has been cleared after it was initially implicated in the tragedy (pictured, bottles of 90 per cent ethanol in a pharmacy)
The owner’s niece Keo Sinorlai said she knew people died at the bar (pictured), but if they had been drinking the distillery’s product, they would not have died
In February this year, the families of Holly Morton-Bowles and Bianca Jones learned 10 employees from the hostel had been found guilty of destroying evidence following an investigation.
The hostel workers each received a suspended sentence and a $185 fine after the case played out in The People’s Court of Vang Vieng in Laos.
They may also be handed exit visas following a 20-day appeal period.
Holly and Bianca’s families said they found out about the court case not from the Australian government but from the loved ones of other poisoning victims.
‘For us not to be told they’re going ahead is abhorrent. There are no words,’ Bianca’s father Mark Jones told 9News at the time.
‘To think that the Laos authorities believe that those involved in killing our daughters is worth $185 is disgraceful.
‘Six people died in that hostel and they’ve opened it again. It’s beyond comprehension.’
Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has issued an apology to the families, saying it ‘fell short’ in its consular duties.
The families of Bianca Jones (left) and Holly Morton-Bowles (right) were told in February this year that 10 employees from the hostel had been found guilty of destroying evidence following an investigation into the deaths at Nana Backpacker’s hostel
‘The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade apologises unreservedly for the failure to keep the families of Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones fully informed about the outcomes of the court case relating to the destruction of evidence following the death of a United States citizen at the Nana Backpacker’s Hostel in November 2024,’ it said.
‘The Department prides itself on its commitment to consular service and to ensuring that the interests of consular clients and their families are paramount.
‘On this occasion, we fell short of our aspiration.’
The department added that the destruction of evidence charges only related to the death of James Hutson, a 57-year-old American tourist.
No further charges will be laid in connection with the deaths; however, a man linked to the distillery where the tainted spirits were produced remains before the courts.
English lawyer Simone White, 28, also died in the mass poisoning, along with Danish friends Anne-Sofie Orkild Coyman, 20, and Freja Sorensen, 21.
The Daily Mail has contacted DFAT and the Laos embassy regarding the investigation, and to ascertain whether they are examining Tiger vodka and whisky.
