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For the reputation that precedes Goa as a vacation spot, little is spoken or credited to the true culture that is seeded in its soil. While micro cuisines of the state have only recently begun to find their place in the spotlight, its locally produced liquors remain underrated in the fabric of its culinary history. While prejudices have clouded the perception about urrac and feni – both by-products of the cashew apple – as being too strong for a refined palate or being a poor man’s drink, the heritage spirits are, in fact, produced with as much care and precision, as one would associate with an aged scotch or sherry.
Origins of Feni & The History Of How It Came To Be
Image Credits: Pexels
Widespread knowledge indicates that the art of distilling feni from the fruit of cashews only commenced in the 16th century – recorded first, in the year 1555. However, coconut – another ingredient that is synonymous with Goan cuisine, much like rice and fish, was the first medium through which the spirit had been distilled (known as madache soro or alcohol of the coconut tree) for centuries from the palm sap, prior to the arrival of the Portuguese, who brought the cashew crop with them. The clear liquor – which adapted the cashew fruit during the summer – involved specific parameters that made the makers of the spirit, or bhatikars, masters of their craft. Fruit had to ripen naturally and fall off the tree and was only picked and dropped into buckets in the afternoon using a porcupine nail tied to a long stick known as kantor, when heat was beating down and the stems were at their weakest.
Known then as Estado da India – or state of India – Goa became the place where Far East, Brazilian, European and African influences collided. North-eastern Goa, which was replete with rolling hills, became the perfect place for acres of cashew plantations to crop up – especially in the Valpoi region – which was touted to be the only largest cashew feni producing region globally – thus becoming the ‘Feni Capital’ of the state. Interestingly, this was also a region that adapted the European method of barrel ageing the local spirit to enable an evolution of flavour as well as help develop complexities that are unique to the spicy, pungent spirit.
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Experiencing Feni Firsthand
Image Credits: Dudhsagar Plantation
Primarily out of a selfish interest to accumulate story-centric culinary experiences, we end up in what looks like expanses of land in the middle of nowhere on a bright morning in Cuelim. The forest area – a land partially dedicated to cashew plantation and feni distilling – is one of many owned by Hansel Vaz, an important name attached to dispelling popular notions surrounding the spirit as well as being instrumental in the research which contributed to feni being awarded a Geographical Indication tag in 2009. Vaz, fondly known as feni doctor, whose endeavours to preserve traditional methods of producing cashew and coconut feni is now well-known through Fazenda Cazulo, offers experiences for curious tourists where they are given a detailed lo-down about the fruit-to-bottle process and a tasting experience for the books!
What essentially began as a hosting around 2017-18 on the property, starts off with visitors sampling a cocktail whose flavours vary depending on what’s seasonally available. A hibiscus-kokum based drink in hand as an ode to the summer, the tour begins with walking up to the ‘Vengurla’ trees from which fruit had long fallen and picked, pressed in a pit known as collmi by stomping to extract the first juice – while also doubling up as a fun activity for kids, collected and poured into koddems or matheche bhann – earthen pots buried halfway in the ground where nature acts as a catalyst for fermentation, without the use of any external agents such as yeast. The second extract, as informed by the guide, is consumed as niro or cashew juice, while the leftover pulp is gathered into a mound and tied using coconut coir before a heavy rock is placed on top to extract any leftover juices which also make their way to the earthen pots.
Once bubbles begin to form in the fermentation process, the mixture is then transferred to a condensation tank or forno, where vapour from the cashew juice is channeled into a bhatti – a traditional contraption which is temperature-controlled and sealed using clay specifically from an anthill, due to its sticky nature which traps fumes in effectively. The first distillation, which produces urrac is re-distilled a second time to make feni with a specific ABV of 42.8%. We’re told that expert distillers simply observe the size of the bubbles and the time duration for which they last with their naked eye, minus a hydrometer to signal the completion of the distillation process.
Food Pairings With Feni
Awed by these new learnings, we’re then guided down a steep slope into what appears to be a pond – where a table is laid with food and shoes are taken off to be seated around it, toes dipped in the water. Learning how to drink feni beyond the classic lime soda and chilli combination is what constituted the essence of the tasting session. A platter containing local delicacies like chorizo-pao, chutney sandwiches, rissois (prawn fritters), a selection of sweets such as perad (guava cheese), sunnas (steamed rice cakes), pinagr (toasted rice cakes), doce, til ladoo accompanied a smorgasbord of sliced green and red apples, chillies, capsicum, brined olives, peanut brittle and nuts. The tiny fish nibbling at our feet as small servings of coconut and cashew feni varieties were brought out, became a sensory experience that went beyond just taste and visuals.
Depending on the palate of the person taking sips of feni along with a bite of the accompaniments, the profiles varied from bitter to spicy, sweet to neutral. This was followed closely by a lieu of cocktails made with fresh guava juice, coconut milk and more of the hibiscus-kokum cocktail we were served at the beginning of the tasting. Upon close observation, garrafoes – or glass carafes were seen nesting in the depths of the pond, waiting to be fished out by enthusiastic divers each year during the Sao Jao festival, welcoming the commencement of the monsoon showers. The cool water of the pond caressed our feet as we continued to share our thoughts about the two hours that had passed, sharing snacks and soaking up the sun. As a way to bring the tasting to an end, we’re shown a long room where hundreds of garrafoes stood on shelves, that had been collected over time. A miniature bottle of a feni variety of our choice in hand, we were sent with our bellies, hearts full and spirits high!
