Phu Quoc Fish Sauce

The island's boats catch anchovies in the Gulf of Thailand and salt them on deck within hours of the net coming up, which is the point everything else follows from. Ashore, the fish are layered with salt in vats of local hardwood, hooped with rattan and holding many tonnes each, then left for ten to twelve months. The first liquid drawn off is the strongest and is graded by nitrogen content rather than by brand, and the vats are drawn again for weaker grades. Phu Quoc sauce holds a protected designation of origin in the European Union, the first Vietnamese product to be granted one, which means the name belongs only to sauce fermented on the island.

What you actually see

• The vats - wooden tubs the height of a room, hooped with rattan and dated in chalk.
• The first draw - nuoc mam nhi, the strongest liquid tapped from the base of the vat.
• Degree ratings - bottles graded by nitrogen content, which is what the price follows.
• The anchovy boats - the fleet unloading at the Duong Dong river mouth.

When to go

The dry season, November to March, is the main fishing period and also the island's best weather. The fish sauce houses on the edge of Duong Dong are open through the working day and most let visitors walk in without arrangement. Mornings are cooler, which matters more here than usual. Allow an hour, including the sales room at the end.

Honest expectations

The smell inside a fermentation house is overwhelming and it stays in clothes and hair for the rest of the day. The visit is short and finishes in a shop. Bottles cannot go in cabin baggage and leak in hold luggage unless triple wrapped. A good deal of sauce sold elsewhere under the island's name is blended on the mainland.

Nearby

Duong Dong night market and the pepper farms in the north of the island.