Buzz Yourself Up With The Traditional Alcoholic Drinks of India

If you are in India, you don’t have to get drunk every time on the expensive scotch, wine & beers. Enjoy the diversity of this great land with some of the traditional alcohols which may not be pretty strong as alcohol but the taste, aroma & flavour can easily scintillate your senses and compel you to enjoy the shot for one more time. Let’s take a tour of traditional alcohols brewed by the locals in India.

1. Country Liquor (Desi Daru)
It is the legal alcoholic drink of India popular with all mass of the Indian population. It is fermented and distilled from molasses which is a by-product of sugarcane. Various flavours of includes Orange, Lemon, Masala & Mango. Since it is commonly available and mostly consumed by daily wage workers, the bottle pricing is kept within their budget. 

2. Handia
Handia is made from rice and a combination of other herbs commonly called the Ranu tablets. It is safe for drinking as the alcohol content is very low. Popular in Jharkhand, Bihar, Orissa, and parts of Bengal, this drink is a huge part of the tribal culture since ancient times. It is often offered by the locals to their God in festive occasions and consumed during the local Tasu Purb, a local name for Makar Sankranti which continues for a month. Handia is also easy to make and gives a relaxing mood.

3. Apong
This beer brand is made from rice fermentation and very popular in the areas of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. Items used in the preparation of Apong are 30 different kinds of tree leaves, creepers, grass, Ashes of banana leaf and bamboo. People of Mising and Adi tribes usually ferment this beer and is popularly consumed during annual festivals or, weddings to celebrate or to cheer the occasion. 

4. Feni
Feni is made from ripened cashew distilled to get its characteristic smell and have around 15% alcohol content. It is Goa’s native drink and very famous amongst foreign travellers too. The Gowdas & Kunbas are known to make this a very famous drink out of cashew apples in Goa.

5. Zutho
Zutho is basically made from rice, water and yeast, there is a secret ingredient that makes the Beer sweet and sour. It is quite popularly consumed during the Nagaland Hornbill Festival. The Zutho is white in colour and one of the most consumed beer in the north-eastern parts of India. 

6.Kallu
This beer drink is made from palm tree sap and is most famous in the areas of Tamil Nadu due to the abundance of palm and coconut trees. The sap is a non-alcoholic, but once it is fermented properly, it makes very sweet beer.it has an average of 4% alcohol and thus does not give much intoxication. The drink is also consumed by the local tribes of Kerala which includes Eravallan, Adiyars, Irulars & Kadars.

7. Coconut Toddy
Toddy is another palm wine beverage but much milder. The sap from coconut is fermented to give this famous beer. Within a couple of hours, the extract turns into a mild, sweet drink with about 4% alcohol. This is also called Arak. The sap from the coconut can be fermented to beer or distilled to give a much strong spirit. The taste and colour of the Arak vary from brewers to brewers.

8. Lugdi
A traditional drink of Himachal Pradesh, Lugdi is prepared from cooked cereal grains. The cereals are left in mesophilic conditions (suitable for bacterial growth) for fermentation and then consumed without any distillation. Summer Lugdi is especially consumed during winters and as a celebratory drink to consume on religious festivals or weddings. Kinnara, Lahaula, Swangia, Pangwala and Shot are the local tribes in Himachal who consume this drink.

9. Mahua
Named after the Mahua lingofolia flower that grows on a tropical Indian tree, this drink is especially popular among tribes in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, and Chhattisgarh. Baiga, Gond, Kol, Panika are some local tribes who are the major consumers of this traditional alcoholic beverage.

10. Arak
Arak is a Ladakhi distilled alcoholic drink made from mature grapevines that originally came to the Northern part of India from Persia. It is a colourless, unsweetened, anise-flavoured drink and is not very widely produced. The leaves are left to ferment for three weeks, after which they are distilled and mixed with aniseed.

11. Kiad um
Kiad um is another rice-based alcoholic drink that tastes sweet. Due to its medicinal properties, the alcohol liquor is considered to be a powerful magical potent. The elders in Meghalaya drink Kiad um during naming ceremonies and babies are feed few drops too. Kiad um is consumed by the Garo, Khasi & Jaintia tribes in Meghalaya. It has got 70% alcohol content and therefore banned by the government and is not easily found.