Palm wine production by smallholders and individual farmers may promote conservation as palm trees become a source of regular household income that may economically be worth more than the value of timber sold.[3][4][bettersourceneeded]
The sap is extracted and collected by a tapper. Typically the sap is collected from the cut flower of the palm tree. A container is fastened to the flower stump to collect the sap. The white liquid that initially collects tends to be very sweet and non-alcoholic before it is fermented. An alternative method is the felling of the entire tree. Where this is practised, a fire is sometimes lit at the cut end to facilitate the collection of sap.
Palm sap begins fermenting immediately after collection, due to natural yeasts in the air (often spurred by residual yeast left in the collecting container). Within two hours, fermentation yields an aromatic wine of up to 4% alcohol content, mildly intoxicating and sweet. The wine may be allowed to ferment longer, up to a day, to yield a stronger, more sour, and acidic taste, which some people prefer. Longer fermentation produces vinegar instead of stronger wine.[5]
Distilled
Palm wine may be distilled to create a stronger drink, which goes by different names depending on the region (e.g., arrack, palm feni, sopi, village gin, charayam, and country whiskey).
In Nigeria, this is commonly called palm wine. In southwestern Nigeria and some parts of Cameroon, it is also known as Emu or Matango. In both Congos, it is called nsámbá. In parts of southern Ghana, distilled palm wine is called akpeteshi or burukutu. In Togo and Benin, it is called sodabe, while in Tunisia it is called lagmi. In coastal parts of Kenya, it is known as mnazi. In India, it is called toddy. In Ivory Coast, it is called koutoukou.
In the Philippines, the most common distilled palm liquor is lambanog which is made from aged tubâ. It has very high alcohol by volume, at 40 to 45% abv (80 to 90 proof).[6]
Consumption by region
Africa
Palm wine is collected, fermented, and stored in calabashes in Bandundu Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo (c. 1990)
Palm wine plays an important role in many ceremonies in many tribes and nations of Nigeria such as among the Igbo and Yoruba peoples, and elsewhere in Central and Western Africa.[7] Guests at weddings, birth celebrations, funerals, and gatherings to observe important festivals and holidays are served in generous quantities. Palm wine is often infused with medicinal herbs to remedy a wide variety of physical complaints. As a token of respect to deceased ancestors, many drinking sessions begin with a small amount of palm wine spilled on the ground (Kulosa malafu in Kikongo ya Leta). Palm wine is enjoyed by men and women, although women usually drink it in less public venues.
In parts of southeastern Nigeria, namely Igboland, palm wine is locally referred to as "mmanya ocha" (literally, "white drink"), with "ngwo" and "nkwu" variants. It plays a very important role in traditional Igbo settings. In Urualla, for instance, and other "ideato" towns, it is the drink of choice for traditional weddings. A young man who is going for the first introduction at his in-laws’ house is required to bring palm wine with him. There are varying gallons of palm wine required, depending on the customs of the different regions in Igboland. This culture can be observed similarly in the neighboring north-western regions of Cameroon. (North West Region).[8]
Poyo is a fermented drink made in Sierra Leone from various species of palm trees. In Sierra Leone, poyo plays an important role among the local people. According to the Limbas people, one of the oldest ethnic groups in Sierra Leone, he who brings poyo brings life. It is served at weddings, birth celebrations and funeral wakes.[9]
There are four types of palm wine in the central and southern Democratic Republic of the Congo. From the oil palm comes ngasi, dibondo comes from the raffia palm, cocoti from the coconut palm, and mahusu from a short palm that grows in the savannah areas of western Bandundu and Kasai provinces.
South Asia
Toddy-tapper climbing a toddy palm in Madras, ca. 1785
A toddy tapper in the state of Telangana selling toddy (2014)Toddy Drawer in India, 1870
In parts of India, the unfermented sap is called neera (patanīr in Tamil Nadu) and is refrigerated, stored, and distributed by semi-government agencies. A small amount of lime (calcium hydroxide) is added to the sap to prevent it from fermenting. Neera, similar to fruit juice products, is relatively rich in potassium.
In India, palm wine or toddy is served as either neera or patanīr (a sweet, non-alcoholic beverage derived from fresh sap) or kallu (a sour beverage made from fermented sap, but not as strong as wine).[10] Palm sap contains natural yeasts, which perform the fermentation of glucose to alcohol, as well as acetobacter, which subsequently converts the alcohol to acetic acid (vinegar). The optimal consumption time is one day after tapping when the vinegar content is minimal; beyond this time, it becomes increasingly sour. Some palm wine drinkers prefer their beverage more sour than usual, but fermenting for too long will result in vinegar rather than wine. Refrigeration extends beverage life, as do a variety of spices, which also contribute to flavor.
In India, palm wine is usually available at toddy shops (known as kallu śāp in Malayalam, kallu kaḍai in Tamil, kalita gaḍaṅg in Tulu, kallu dukānaṁ in Telugu, kallu aṅgaḍi in Kannada). In Tamil Nadu, this beverage is currently banned, though the legality fluctuates with politics. In the absence of legal toddy, moonshine distillers of arrack often sell methanol-contaminated alcohol, which can have lethal consequences. To discourage this practice, authorities have pushed for inexpensive "Indian Made Foreign Liquor" (IMFL).
In the states of Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh (India), toddy is a popular drink in rural parts that is frequently consumed at the end of the day after work.
There are two main types of toddy (kallu) in the states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, namely taḍi kallu (Telugu: తాటికల్లు) (from Toddy Palmyra trees) and īta kallu (Telugu: ఈతకల్లు) (from silver date palms). Īta kallu is very sweet and less intoxicating, whereas taḍi kallu is stronger (sweet in the morning, becoming sour to bitter-sour in the evening) and is highly intoxicating. People enjoy kallu right at the trees where it is brought down. They drink out of leaves by holding them to their mouths while the Goud pours the kallu from the biṅki (kallu pot). There are different types of toddy according to the season: poḍḍataḍu, parpuḍtaḍu, paṇḍuḍtaḍu. [citation needed].
In the Indian state of Kerala, toddy is used in leavening (as a substitute for yeast) a local form of hopper called the vellayappam. Toddy is mixed with rice dough and left overnight to aid in fermentation and expansion of the dough causing the dough to rise overnight, making the bread soft when prepared.
In Kerala, toddy is sold under a license issued by the excise department and it is an industry having more than 50,000 employees with a welfare board under the labor department. It is also used in the preparation of a soft variety of Sanna, which is famous in the parts of Karnataka and Goa in India.
Indonesia and Malaysia
Lithograph of a palm wine vendor and a native KNIL soldier consuming tuak (1854)
Tuak, which can refer to both palm wine and rice wine,[11] is imbibed in Sumatra, Sulawesi, Kalimantan, and Bali of Indonesia and parts of Malaysia such as Sabah and Sarawak in East Malaysia. The beverage is a popular drink among the Kadazan-Dusun, Ibans, and Dayaks during the Gawai and Kaamatan festivals, weddings, hosting of guests, and other special occasions. The Batak people of North Sumatra also consume palm wine,[12] with palm sap mixed with raru bark to make Tuak. The brew is served at stalls along with snacks.[1] The same word is used for other drinks in Indonesia, for example, those made using fermented rice.
Mexico
Tuba fresca from Colima, Mexico; a non-alcoholic drink made from coconut sap derived from Philippinetubâ
Mexican tuba made from coconut sap is common in western Mexico, especially in the states of Colima, Jalisco, Michoacán, and Guerrero. Coconuts are not native to the Americas. They were introduced to Mexico from the Philippines via the Manila Galleons to Acapulco, along with tuba manufacturing.[13][14][15] Mexican tuba is made in the same way as Filipino tubâ. The traditional sap collectors are known as tuberos (which also means "plumber" in both Mexico and the Philippines). It became so popular that in 1619, Captain Sebastian de Piñeda wrote to King Philip III of Spain complaining about the Filipino "Indio" settlers in Nueva España who were causing significant loss of profits to Iberian alcohol exporters due to tuba.[16][17]
Mexican tuba is also commonly sold as tuba fresca, a non-alcoholic version made from fresh coconut sap. It is traditionally sold by street vendors in large bottle gourds mixed with coconut milk, ice, and sugar. It is usually topped with peanuts and diced fruit.[18][19]
Palm wines are widely consumed in the Philippines and are part of the traditional palm vinegar industry. They are gathered mostly from coconuts, nipa palms, or kaong palms. Palm wines fermented for a few days to a few weeks are generally referred to as tubâ. There are two notable traditional derivations of tubâ with higher alcohol contents. The first is distilledliquor, generally known as lambanog (coconut) and laksoy (nipa palm). They are milky white to clear in colour. The second is the bahalina which is typically deep brown-orange due to the use of bark extracts from the mangrove Ceriops tagal.[6]
Other types of palm wines indigenous to the islands include subtypes of tubâ like tuhak or tubâ sa hidikup which is made from kaong palm sap, and tunggang which is made from fishtail palm sap.[6]
On the island of Leyte in the central Philippines, the red tubâ is aged with the tanbark for up to six months to two years, until it gets dark red, and tapping its glass container gives off a deep hollow sound. This type of tubâ is called bahal (for tubâ aged this way for up to six months) and bahalina (for tubâ aged thus for up to a year or more).
South America
Production of palm wine may have contributed to the endangered status of the Chilean wine palm (Jubaea chilensis).[20]
Other areas
In Tuvalu, the process of making toddy can be seen with tapped palm trees that line Funafuti International Airport. In Kiribati, it is called Karewe and freshly tapped sap from coconut spathe is used as a refreshing drink and the fermented sap is used as an alcoholic beverage. Karewe is boiled to reduce into a thick light brown liquid, called kamwaimwai, used as a sweetener and spread.
Consumption by animals
Some small pollinating mammals consume large amounts of fermented palm nectar as part of their diet, especially the Southeast Asian pen-tailed treeshrew. The inflorescences of the bertam palm contain populations of yeast that ferment the nectar in the flowers to up to 3.8% alcohol (average: 0.6%). The treeshrews metabolise the alcohol very efficiently and do not appear to become drunk from the fermented nectar.[21]
Megabats have been known to drink from containers of harvested palm sap and then urinate into the containers, leading to the transmission of the Nipah virus.
Names
There are a variety of regional names for palm wine:
nira (Malay for fresh juice obtained from the blossom of the coconut, palm or sugar-palm, which can be made into sugar or the said palm wine, which is also known as tuak[22]), toddy (English), bahar (Kadazan/Dusun), goribon (Rungus), tuba (Borneo)
Maldives
ދޯރާ،ރުކުރާ،މީރާ (dōrā, rukurā, mīrā)
Mali
bandji, sibiji, chimichama
Marianas
tuba (originated from the Philippines)
Mexico
tuba (garnished with peanuts, originated from the Philippines)
tubâ (general term for fermented and unfermented palm sap), lambanóg (distilled coconut sap, also vino de coco, dalisay de coco), laksoy (distilled nipa palm sap, also dalisay de nipa, barik), bahalina or bahal (aged tubâ with mangrove bark extracts), tuhak or tubâ sa hidikup (sugar palm wine), tunggang (fishtail palm wine), dalisay (general term for distilled palm liquor)
Bowl for tuak drinking made from a gourd (late 19th century)
Tapping the sap of the immature flower flasks in "arènpalm" (Arenga pinnata), one of the palms used to make palm wine, in Ambon, Moluccas (1919). The wine was called toewak (Dutch), tuak or sagoweer (saguer). The fresh sap, "sugar water", was also so drunk.
Palm wine seller in Bali (1929)
Taken in Southern Leyte, Philippines where a tuba gatherer climb the coconut tree to harvest some tuba.
Sitting on the coconut palm while gathering tuba.
A young Toddy-picker climbing a palm tree to collect palm wine, visakhapatnam, India.
Palampore tapestry depicting toddy tappers, India, 1750 CE.
Locally called "manananggot" for tuba gatherer.
Gathering tuba from the coconut tree.
Toddey tapper at work, India, ca.1862.
Toddey trapper climbing palm tree with a hanging ladder, India.
Coconut trees, and Toddy gatherers of southern India (1855)
Vinegar is an aqueous solution of acetic acid and trace compounds that may include flavorings. Vinegar typically contains from 5% to 18% acetic acid by volume. Usually, the acetic acid is produced by a double fermentation, converting simple sugars to ethanol using yeast and ethanol to acetic acid using acetic acid bacteria. Many types of vinegar are made, depending on source materials. The product is now mainly used in the culinary arts as a flavorful, acidic cooking ingredient or in pickling. Various types are used as condiments or garnishes, including balsamic vinegar and malt vinegar.
Feni is a spiritous liquor type originating in Goa, India. The two most popular types of feni are cashew feni and coconut feni. Depending on the ingredients; however, other varieties and newer blends are also sold by distilleries. The small-batch distillation of feni has a fundamental effect on its final character, which still retains some of the delicate aromatics, congeners, and flavour elements of the juice from which it is produced.
Aguardente (Portuguese) or aguardiente (Spanish) is a type of distilled alcoholic spirit that contains between 29% and 60% alcohol by volume (ABV). It is a somewhat generic term that can refer to liquors made from various foods. It originates from and is typically consumed on the Iberian Peninsula and in Iberian America.
Kilju is the Finnish word for home made alcoholic beverage typically made of sugar, yeast, and water, making it both affordable and cheap to produce. The ABV is around 15–17%, and since it does not contain a sweet reserve it is completely dry. Crude fermented water may be distilled to moonshine. Kilju for consumption is clarified to avoid wine fault. It is a flax-colored alcoholic beverage with no discernible taste other than that of ethanol. It can be used as an ethanol base for drink mixers.
Arrack is a distilled alcoholic drink typically produced in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, made from the fermented sap of coconut flowers or sugarcane, and also with grain or fruit depending upon the country of origin. It is sometimes spelled arak, or simply referred to as 'rack or 'rak. It is not to be confused with the anise-flavored distilled spirit called arak or araq. In many parts of India arrack is colloquially known as "desi daru".
Lambanóg is a traditional Filipino distilled palm liquor. It is an alcoholic liquor made from the distillation of naturally fermented sap (tubâ) from palm trees such as sugar palm, coconut, or nipa. Lambanog is well-known for having a strong alcohol concentration and can be used as a base liquor for various flavored spirits and cocktail creations. The most popular variety is the coconut lambanog which is commonly described as "coconut vodka" due to its clear to milky white color and high alcohol content. It originates from Luzon and the Visayas Islands. During the Spanish colonial period, it was also known as vino de coco in Spanish. It is particularly potent, having a typical alcohol content of 80 to 90 proof after a single distillation; this may go as high as 166 proof after the second distillation.
Neera, also called palm nectar, is a sap extracted from the inflorescence of various species of toddy palms and used as a drink. Neera extraction is generally performed before sunrise. It is sweet, translucent in colour. It is susceptible to natural fermentation at ambient temperature within a few hours of extraction, and is also known as palm wine. Once fermented, Neera becomes toddy. Neera is widely consumed in India, Sri Lanka, Africa, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Myanmar. Neera is not the juice made from palm fruit.
An alcoholic beverage is a beverage containing alcohol (ethanol). Alcoholic drinks are typically divided into three classes—beers, wines, and spirits—and typically their alcohol content is between 3% and 50%.
Coconut production contributes to the national economy of Sri Lanka. The scientific name of the coconut is Cocos nucifera. Sri Lanka there are three varieties, tall variety, dwarf variety and King coconut variety. According to figures published in December 2018 by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, it is the world's fourth largest producer of coconuts, producing 2,623,000 tonnes in 2018.
Bahalina, sometimes called "coconut red wine", is a traditional Filipino palm wine made from fermented coconut or nipa palm sap. It is derived from tubâ that has been aged for several months to several years. It originates from the Visayas and Mindanao islands of the southern Philippines. It is deep brown-orange in color and has a slightly bitter astringent taste.
Philippine wine or Filipino wine are various wines produced in the Philippines. They include indigenous wines fermented from palm sap, rice, job's tears, sugarcane, and honey; as well as modern wines mostly produced from various fruit crops.
Intoxicants in Sri Lanka are legal in certain contexts. One can legally buy most alcohols, tobaccos, and certain herbals through licensed ayurvedic shops, who are provided the raw materials by the Ministry of Health and then compelled to produce solutions/products that are then sold to the public. It is also possible to purchase tobacco from convenience stores and alcohol from several licensed stores.
Nipa palm vinegar, also known as sukang sasâ or sukang nipa, is a traditional Filipino vinegar made from the sap of the nipa palm. It is one of the four main types of vinegars in the Philippines, along with coconut vinegar, cane vinegar, and kaong palm vinegar. It is usually sold under the generic label of "palm vinegar".
Tubâ is a Filipino alcoholic beverage created from the sap of various species of palm trees. During the Spanish colonial period, tubâ was introduced to Guam, the Marianas, and Mexico via the Manila galleons. It remains popular in Mexico, especially in the states of Colima, Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit, and Guerrero. Tubâ was also introduced to the Torres Strait Islands of Australia in the mid-19th century by Filipino immigrant workers in the pearling industry.
Kaong palm vinegar, also known as irok palm vinegar or arengga palm vinegar, is a traditional Filipino vinegar made from the sap of the kaong sugar palm. It is one of the four main types of vinegars in the Philippines, along with coconut vinegar, cane vinegar, and nipa palm vinegar. It is usually sold under the generic label of "palm vinegar".
The Philippines has its own unique drinking culture and practices that are based on influences from its Austronesian heritage to the colonial influences of Spain, the United States, and Japan.
Laksoy, is a traditional Filipino distilled nipa palm liquor. It is derived from tubâ made from nipa palm sap that has been aged for at least 48 hours. It originates from Eastern Mindanao, the Visayas Islands,, the Bicol Region, and Southern Luzon. During the Spanish colonial period, it was also known as vino de nipa in Spanish. It has a typical alcohol content of 70 to 100 proof after a single distillation.
↑ Ogunnaike, Ayodeji (Spring 2019). "The Tree That Centres The World: The Palm Tree As Yoruba Axis Mundi". Africana Studies Review. 6 (1). Southern University at New Orleans: 46, 49–50.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
