Arrack

Arrack was banned in the states of Kerala in 1996,[8] and Karnataka on 1 July 2007.[9][10]

Batavian arrack factory "Aparak" in 1948

Within Indonesia itself, the term arak is still widely used to describe arrack. Arak (or rice wine) was a popular alcoholic beverage during the colonial era.[11] It is considered the "rum" of Indonesia because, like rum, it is distilled from sugarcane. It is a pot still distillation. To start the fermentation, local fermented red rice is combined with local yeast to give a unique flavor and smell of the distillate. It is distilled to approx. 70% ABV. Like rum, Batavia-arrack is often a blend of different original parcels.

One of the longest established arrack companies in Indonesia is the Batavia Arak Company (Dutch Batavia-Arak Maatschappij), which was already in business by 1872, became a limited liability company in 1901, and was still operating in the early 1950s. The Batavia Arak Company also exported arack to the Netherlands and had an office in Amsterdam. Some of the arrack brand produced by Batavia Arak Company were KWT (produced in the Bandengan (Kampung Baru) area of old Jakarta) and OGL.[11] Still commonly available in Northern Europe and Southern Asia, Batavia Arrack can be difficult to find in the United States. Batavia-Arrack van Oosten is a more recently available brand.[12]

Batavia-Arrack is said to enhance flavor when used as a component in other products, such as pastries (like the Finnish Runeberg torte or the Dresdner Stollen), or in the confectionery and flavor industries. It is used in herbal and bitter liqueurs, and as a component in alcoholic punches (such as punsch, regent punch,[13] royal punch,[14] and black tea-port milk punch[15]).

Its use in punch was noted by early American bartender Jerry Thomas: "Most of the arrack imported into this country is distilled from rice, and comes from Batavia. It is but little used in America, except to flavor punch; the taste of it is very agreeable in this mixture. Arrack improves very much with age. It is much used in some parts of India, where it is distilled from toddy, the juice of the coconut tree".[16]

In Indonesia, arrack is often created as a form of moonshine.

Left: bahalina, a Philippine palm wine;
Right: bubblegum-flavored lambanog, a palm liquor

A Filipino term for distilled and undistilled alcoholic drinks in general is alak, derived from the Arabic word "arrak". The term "arak," though, is specifically used in Ilocano. Arracks in the Philippines are predominantly not distilled. They can be derived from palm sap (notably coconut, nipa palm, or kaong palm), sugarcane, or rice. The only native alcohol that is traditionally distilled is lambanóg, which is made from the sap of palm flowers. The sap is harvested into bamboo receptacles similar to rubber tapping, then cooked or fermented to produce a mildly-alcoholic coconut toddy called tubâ. The tubà, which by itself is also a popular beverage, is further distilled to produce lambanóg.[17][18][19]

The Italian explorer, Antonio Pigafetta, stated that the arrack that he drank in Palawan and nearby islands in 1521 was made from distilled rice wine.[20] However, he was likely referring to pangasi, a rice wine which is not distilled.[19]

"Ceylon Arrack"

Sri Lanka is the largest producer of coconut arrack and up until 1992 the government played a significant role in its production.[21][22]

Other than water, the entire manufacturing process revolves around the fermentation and distillation of a single ingredient, the sap of unopened flowers from a coconut palm (Cocos nucifera).[23] Each morning at dawn, men known as toddy tappers move among the tops of coconut trees using connecting ropes not unlike tightropes. A single tree may contribute up to two litres per day.

Due to its concentrated sugar and yeast content, the captured liquid naturally and immediately ferments into a mildly alcoholic drink called "toddy", tuak, or occasionally "palm wine". Within a few hours after collection, the toddy is poured into large wooden vats, called "wash backs", made from the wood of teak or Berrya cordifolia. The natural fermentation process is allowed to continue in the washbacks until the alcohol content reaches 5-7% and deemed ready for distillation.

Distillation is generally a two-step process involving either pot stills, continuous stills, or a combination of both. The first step results in "low wine", a liquid with an alcohol content between 20 and 40%.[24] The second step results in the final distillate with an alcohol content of 60 to 90%. It is generally distilled to between 33% and 50% alcohol by volume (ABV) or 66 to 100 proof. The entire distillation process is completed within 24 hours. Various blends of coconut arrack diverge in processing, yet the extracted spirit may also be sold raw, repeatedly distilled or filtered, or transferred back into halmilla vats for maturing up to 15 years, depending on flavor, color and fragrance requirements.

Premium blends of arrack add no other ingredients, while the inexpensive and common blends are mixed with neutral spirits before bottling. Most people describe the taste as resembling "…a blend between whiskey and rum", similar, but distinctively different at the same time.

Coconut arrack is traditionally consumed by itself or with ginger beer, a popular soda in Sri Lanka. It also may be mixed in cocktails as a substitute for the required portions of either rum or whiskey. Arrack is often combined with popular mixers such as cola, soda water, and lime juice.

According to the Alcohol and Drug Information Centre's 2008 report on alcohol in Sri Lanka, the types of arrack are:[25]

• Special arrack, which is produced in the highest volume, nearly doubling in production between 2002 and 2007.
• Molasses arrack is the least-processed kind and considered the common kind.[25] Nevertheless, as a whole, arrack is the most popular local alcoholic beverage consumed in Sri Lanka and produced as a wide variety of brands that fit into the following three categories:
• Premium aged, after distillation, is aged in halmilla vats for up to 15 years to mature and mellow the raw spirit before blending. Premium brands include Ceylon Arrack, VSOA, VX, Vat9, Old Reserve and Extra Special.
• Premium clear is generally not aged, but often distilled and/or filtered multiple times to soften its taste. Premium clear brands include Double Distilled and Blue Label.
• Common is blended with other alcohols produced from molasses or mixed with neutral spirits as filler.

Sri Lanka's largest manufacturers, listed in order based on their 2007 annual production of arrack,[25] are:

• DCSL (Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka), 37.25 million litres
• IDL (International Distilleries Ltd), 3.97 million litres
• Rockland Distilleries (Pvt) Ltd, 2.18 million litres
• Mendis, 0.86 million litres

Ceylon Arrack, a brand of Sri Lankan coconut arrack, was recently launched in the UK in 2010. It is also available in France and Germany.[26] White Lion VSOA entered the American market soon after.[27]

Coconut arrack for export

Historically Arrack has been a common beverage on the island of St Helena, distilled from potatoes.[28] This is likely due to influences of the East India Company, which controlled St Helena and used it as a halfway point between India and England.[29]

In Sweden and Finland, batavia-arrack has historically been mixed with other ingredients in order to make Swedish punsch (now available in prepackaged bottles). The alcohol content is normally not over 25%, although it has a high sugar content of nearly 30%. The original recipe was a mixture of arrack with water, sugar, lemon, and tea and/or spices (chiefly nutmeg).[3] Today punsch is mostly drunk warm as an accompaniment to yellow split pea soup, although it is also used as a flavouring in several types pastries and sweets as well. The name arrak is still retained for some pastries, for example arraksboll, whereas punsch is used for things like punschrulle. In Finland, arrack (or rum) usually serves as one of the ingredients in the making one of the Finnish traditional pastries, Runeberg tortes.