Summary
Holly Bowles, a 19-year-old Australian, has become the sixth foreign tourist to die from suspected methanol poisoning in Laos.
She and her friend Bianca Jones fell ill in Vang Vieng, a popular backpacking town, after reportedly consuming tainted alcohol, which can be lethal even in small amounts.
Other victims include a British lawyer, an American man, and two Danish women. Methanol, often found in bootleg or home-distilled alcohol, is believed to be the cause.
Authorities are investigating, with the manager of the hostel where free shots were served detained for questioning.
Distillation does not magically add methanol. If you simply look at the ingredients, it’s fairly clear that it would be very hard to ferment a deadly amount of ethanol.
Maybe if they added tons of wood and leaves and used high pectine fruits? I guess it’s a possibility, but still seems unlikely.