Indian Liquor: A Guide to the Country's Must-Try Spirits - Condé Nast Traveler

India has a long history with alcohol. It’s been consumed for centuries, and there are references to alcoholic fermentation and distillation that date back to 200 B.C.

Today, alcohol in India is broadly categorized as foreign liquor, Indian-made foreign liquor, and Indian-made Indian Liquor (also known as country liquor or desi daaru). Indigenous spirits fall under the country liquor category and are often considered subpar. In reality, they are some of the country's best spirits, and are made by artisans who struggle with selling them due to archaic license laws. These distinctive regional liquors—palm toddy in Kerala, rice beer or wine in the North East, mahua in central India, and cashew feni in Goa—offer wonderful insight into the country’s diverse cultures and local produce. Here's what to know about these spirits, and where to find them on your travels or at home. 

Feni

Feni, produced in Goa, is a clear, colorless drink with a high alcohol content ranging between 42 and 45 percent. Local variations include cashew feni, distilled from cashew fruit, and coconut feni, distilled from the sap of the coconut tree. Cashew feni has a strong aroma, and is best sipped neat, or with a citrus mixer like Limca, a lemon-and-lime flavored carbonated drink. Coconut feni is milder in flavor and aroma, and usually drank neat.

Cashew feni, produced in Goa, is distilled from cashew fruit.

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Feni has a Geographical Index tag, which means it can only be produced and sold in Goa; it can also be exported abroad. All liquor shops in Goa sell feni—look out for branded names like Cazulo and Big Boss, plus local taverns are often judged by their homemade feni. Bars in Goa like For The Record Vinyl Bar and Joseph’s Bar are innovating with feni cocktails like the Goan Bloody Mary, made with guava juice and cashew feni.

Rice wine and beer

In many parts of Northeastern India, tribal communities brew and consume beer or wine made of rice. The brews are made with a starter cake, which combines steamed glutinous rice and herbs, plants, and spices. The different fermentation times and the variation in the starter cakes determine the flavor. You’ll find these under various names in each region: there’s chubitchi in Meghalaya, the sour beer zutho in Nagaland, xaj and apong in Assam, langi in Tripura; and handia, and chhang in several states.

Sekmai yu is a local rice liquor distilled in Manipur. Its smooth taste is reminiscent of vodka, though a few compare it to Japanese sake. The most popular rice wine is judima, the traditional of the Dimasa tribe in Assam. The fermented beverage uses a starter cake, or humao, prepared from the bark of the thembra plant. This is mixed with local glutinous rice that is boiled and air dried, and kept to ferment in earthen vessels. Locals believe judima has many health benefits; in fact, newborn babies are given a taste of the drink to keep away bad luck. The wine is now available in shops under the name Judima; it’s also available at the annual Judima Festival showcasing the Dima Hasao region in late December.

Toddy

In Kerala, coconut trees provide nourishment in the form of a murky white alcoholic brew called toddy, or kallu.

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