13 June, 2006
The energy of the Indian maharajas is legendary but one of the best-kept secrets of their prowess is now to be made available to the public after more than 50 years. Home-brewed liquors, a heady concoction of herbs, spices and raw spirit, have been sustaining the royal families of Rajasthan for centuries, with more than 150 recipes handed down from generation to generation.
This year the state distillery of Rajasthan has decided to market some of the more palatable examples under the legend of "Heritage Liquor", using recipes obtained from the houses of Jodhpur, Jaipur and western Rajasthan. The rustic versions of the spirit were so fiery - in some brands alcohol levels exceeded 90 per cent - that they were banned in 1952. The act was relaxed in 1988 but many local "country liquor" brands still contained over 80 per cent alcohol and were the preferred tipple of impoverished Rajasthani villages intent on getting blind drunk - sometimes literally.
The new brews, known locally as "baap dada ki daru" or "the whiskey of our forefathers", are more refined, with alcohol content at 42 per cent to suit the softer palates of the thousands of tourists who visit Rajasthan every year.
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