Panaji: Feni recently got a museum dedicated to its locally brewed alcohol. Nandan Kudchadkar, an antique collector who started the museum after learning about it, houses hundreds of artefacts related to alcohol, including hundreds of traditional glass vats used for storing the cashew-based alcohol built centuries ago in Candolim. ‘The objective behind starting the museum was to make the world aware of Goa`s rich heritage, especially the story of feni and the legacy of the alcohol trail from Brazil to Goa,’ Kudchadkar told IANS.
Cashew nut plants are believed to have been imported to Goa by its colonial rulers, the Portuguese, from Brazil in the 1700s. Brazil and Goa both share a Lusophonian colonial influence.
After the plant was brought to the shores of Goa, cashew has taken root in Goa and so has feni. A popular alcoholic beverage in Goa, cashew feni is distilled from fermented juice extracted from cashew apples. Farmers harvest cashew apples from orchards leased from the government each season. The juice from the apples is then fermented and then distilled using traditional methods. After being distilled once, the fermented juice becomes a mildly intoxicating summer drink called ‘urrak’, while once double distilled, the drink is known as ‘feni’. Feni is also blended with spices like clove, pepper, nutmeg and cinnamon to create another variation known as `masala feni`.
Coconut feni is also distilled from palm toddy by the same process. Cashew feni is also the first indigenous liquor in the country to receive the Geographical Indication label, which was initiated by the local brewers of the beverage in 2009.
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Goa notified Feni, a drink commonly consumed by the local residents of its coastal state, as the state heritage drink in 2016 in order to allow its manufacturers to market it globally like scotch and tequila. ‘We have glass garafaos (vats) which date back to centuries, an era when the Portuguese ruled Goa. There are hundreds of exhibits, each made with love and the very act of seeing them in their glory makes us feel passionate about our heritage,’ Kudchadkar said.
As soon as the feni was made, it was stored and aged in large vats for years to mature. Kudchadkar said the alcohol museum will preserve utensils, glass, bottles, and more from yesteryears when Goa was known as the ‘Rome of the East.’ Kudchadkar said that his inspiration for opening the museum was simple: ‘The inspiration was simple, it was the sheer pleasure of showcasing Goa as something different as usual. The cosmopolitan world traveller visits Goa and what better place is there in India other than Goa, where you can show to the world the history, respect and flavours of our colonial drink.’
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