ARAK Attack

Arak – that much maligned and much loved beverage from the east of Bali- comes from humble beginnings as do many good things.

Every country has some kind of homemade firewater. Scotland has its whiskies which have gained international repute, Nepal has its Rakshi, India has its feni, Thailand has its Mekong, the Caribbean has its cane spirits, Kentucky has its bourbon and Europe has too many to mention, each county or province producing its own wickedly alcoholic versions, and Bali is no exception with its Arak.

Even all the famous stills in Scotland and Kentucky started off as little more than backyard operations. Some were better than others and some got lucky and today they are internationally accepted by steady drinkers and connoisseurs alike.

In Bali, the fight for legitmacy and acceptance continues. Some factories are producing legal arak, which can be found in supermarkets, bars and shops all over the south. Unfortunately the legal arak comes from the coconut palm and is a vastly inferior product to those that are produced from the ental (lontar) or jaka palms and even from cashew fruit. Where the coconut variety does little more than make you tipsy at best, or normally just puts you to sleep.

The better quality araks make you want to get up and dance, laugh, have a good time. Your blood starts rushing faster, and feelings of good will to all can overcome you. Arak can fuel all night temple entertainments, rituals and of course that other grand Karengasem musical tradition of genjek, which gets better as the arak flows longer. It is good stuff, and if it could be legitimised and even promoted, the world would be a better place.

The basic material is tuak, collected in the morning and evening from the bruised fruit of the palms. The already alcoholic liquid can be drunk immediately or left to ferment a little longer before being taken to a still and transmorgified into that magical beverage, where a little means a lot.

The tuak is boiled on a fire and the alcoholic steam is collected then directed into bamboo pipes to cool before it drips into the plastic containers that hold it ready for distribution. When arak comes from the villages, it s of a good quality with none of the deadly methanol or other additives, that may be found in the anonymous back street producers of Denpasar. After all they would not want to kill off their customers, would they!

http://www.nowbali.co.id/secret-bali-oct10/

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