French Colonialism & Vietnam’s Obsession with Hennessy

Have you ever wonder why Vietnamese Americans have a cult-like obsession with Hennessy? The answer can be found by studying France’s colonization of Vietnam.

Background

French colonization of Vietnam happened on both economic and cultural levels. The Vietnamese generation under French colonialism were taught that the French were superior and French standards were forcibly taught to the Vietnamese people.

France’s culture was considered more refined, modern, and luxurious.

Vietnamese capitalists, especially the rising landlord bourgeoisie class from the 1920s and 30s often benefited from colonial rule and looked up to French colonialists. They also liked to surround themselves with French cultural items to show off their proximity to European wealth.  

Hennessey was a French cognac-based liquor company that became very popular in Vietnam. It gained prestige in what was used to be known as Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City), one of the cities where France set up breweries and distilleries, alongside with Hanoi and Haiphong.

The dark history behind Hennessy

The French government ran opium and alcohol monopolies in Indochina and actively manufactured substance addiction in the local populations, unfairly profiteering off of Vietnamese people.

In his 1945 Declaration of Independence, Ho Chi Minh mentioned the monopolies as evidence of how France had abused their principles of ‘”Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity ‘ by weakening “our race” with addiction and impoverishing the peasantry with taxes. 

Opium sales alone contributed to 1/3rd of the colonial government’s revenue from 1882 to 1910. 

What Hennessy symbolizes

Hennessy VSOP Privilege was especially revered by the elite Vietnamese class because it was a drink that doubled as a status signifier and an indicator of wealth.

For special occasions, Vietnamese people loved being gifted bottles of Hennessy VSOP because of what it represented: the privilege to experience the finer things in life and to distinguish oneself from the working class.

Many Vietnamese people continue to choose Hennessy as their top choice of liquor because of the grip French standards continue to have over the Vietnamese people after colonialism. 

France’s colonial legacy still lives on with todays Vietnamese diaspora. The Vietnamese American diaspora tends to come from upper class and Catholic South Vietnam families who benefited If the French elites or being part of the new landlord class created by Governor-General Paul Doumers’ policies.

The first Vietnamese American immigrants came from Saigon and settled in Orange County, CA they didn’t just bring their love of Hennessy with them. They also brought their values of Western capitalism, eager to assimilate into America because they had escaped the Vietnamese government’s “oppressive” wealth redistribution policies.

The French colonial period continually affects the Vietnamese diaspora today in both overt and subtle ways. Hennessy VSOP is more than just an expensive alcoholic drink. It also signifies certain cultural values and messages about France in relation to Vietnam.

Next time you and your friends enjoy a bottle of Hennessy VSOP, ask yourself:

• Why do I chose to celebrate with this drink
• Why is it my preference?
• How can I explain my individual choice within the larger picture of French colonization, cultural oppression, and assimilation?

Like many other countries, Vietnam has been experiencing class conflict for a very long time.

How can we begin to understand the Vietnamese diaspora’s identity as stemming from that very conflict, which was also perpetuated by American imperialism and interference in the Vietnam War?

By looking in Vietnam’s history with Hennessy, we begin to interrogate why we consider it integral to our diaspora’s culture.