LUANG PRABANG, LAOS (LP) - While many people in the West have not even heard of the country of Laos, even fewer have heard of Lao coffee. But this is beginning to change in the charming city of Luang Prabang, the former Royal capital of Laos. Tourists are flocking here to see "the best preserved city" in Southeast Asia and to try one of the best brewed coffees in the region. While saffron-robed Buddhist monks make their rounds early in the morning along the streets of this ancient UNESCO World Heritage site, enchanted travelers are sipping on Saffron Coffee along the banks of the Mekong.

"Saffron Coffee was begun as an initiative to help former growers of opium who live high in the mountains of northern Laos," says David Dale, the founder and President of Saffron Coffee Company--the first coffee company in northern Laos. "Laos has always been known for 'The Golden Triangle' and the opium it produced. But when the government started to effectively put an end to opium production, upland farmers had little choice but to succumb to poverty."

Indeed, Laos is one of the poorest countries in the world with the average per capita income of around $800 according to the US Department of State website. Ravaged by the "Secret War" and a restrictive economic policy, Laos wallowed in extreme poverty after the Vietnam War up until the 1990s. Now that the Lao government has embraced a free enterprise system, the country has seen steady economic growth. New replacement crops like coffee are helping to make a difference.