For starters, be aware that rice wine is not technically wine – it’s a full-blooded liquor, and shop-bought versions will be around the 40% alcohol mark. So it’s best not to go at it with the same fervor that you might normally reserve for a bottle of Savvy B.
The word ‘ruou’ is often used in Vietnam to mean rice wine, but this can also be used to mean any type of liquor or alcoholic spirit. You may hear the word ‘ruou gao’ in the north when people are specifically talking about rice wine, or ‘ruou de’ in the south.