I opened the Mahua bottle and tried it neat as well as with tonic. Used Indian Fever Tree for this purpose.

My initial impression was that the drink will be on the sweeter side to the palate and floral to the nose. Turns out, this was nothing like that. At first, it felt very earthy – almost like a light scotch.

When I had the tonic water with it, it immediately reminded me of Oude Jenever. This is the predecessor of modern day gin – originating from Belgium and the Netherlands.

Now I know what cocktails to make from this!

I was gifted this bottle by my friend Shantanu from Chicago. Every time I hear the name, my mind goes back to the lilting tunes of the Bengali song “মহুয়ায় জমেছে আজ মৌ গো”. (“Oh! the nectar has gathered in the Mahua flowers today”)

Mahua is a flower common in the forests of central and eastern India. The tribal folks in Indian villages used to make an alcoholic drink from those flowers. Many of them considered the tree sacred in their culture.

During British colonial rule, they banned this drink to favor alcohol imports from the UK.

Lately, this drink is making a comeback in India. It is said to be a rare drink made straight from the flower’s nectar.

My friend got it for me from India. Can’t wait to try it out.