6 Himalayan Local Drinks To Quench Your Thirst With A Twist

There is a different kind of charm about drinking in the mountains. Be it taking a sip of warm coffee or chugging down chilled beer, both experiences seem magical when we’re in the hills. Also, the Himalayan stretches in India offer a plethora of local drinks that not only taste unique but can also soothe our senses. Here is a list of six of 6 local drinks you must try the next time you’re in the Himalayas:

1. Tongba

Tongba is a unique millet-based alcoholic beverage popular along the slopes of the eastern Himalayas. When you’re in Sikkim, Darjeeling or Nepal, you can try out this drink to ditch the stone-cold weather. Tongba is often consumed with a bamboo straw from a bamboo container. It is served hot, unlike other liquors. Tongba is sometimes referred to as Chaang.

Also Read: 6 Delicacies You Should Not Miss Eating On Your Next Trip To Sikkim

2. Chaang

Chaang is a refreshing drink from the Ladakhi Himalayas and it is also popular in the eastern Himalayas of Nepal and Sikkim. It is an ethnic drink of Nepal and Tibet and is brewed with barley or rice grains. It warms up the body in the cold weather. A distilled form of Chaang, known as Arak, is also available in Ladakh. But Arak is quite rare, and to try it, you got to make some local friends.

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3. Chulli

Chulli is a local Himachali drink prepared from apples and apricots. It is a smooth alcoholic drink available in the Kinnaur region in Himachal Pradesh. Also known as ghanti, it is a vodka-like beverage with a fruity essence. The drink is a mood lifter and is known to have healing properties.

4. Saino Rio Red Wine

What if we told you that you can get a bottle of Indian red wine for just ₹50? Well, we aren’t kidding, a small bottle of Saino Rio red wine from Sikkim costs just ₹50. Prepared from the pulp of red or black grapes, then fermented with grape skin, this red wine tastes sweet and exquisite. This is one of the best local wines of Sikkim. I Stayed At This Homestay In Lachung Perched At 12,000 Ft That Isn’t Traceable On The Internet

4. Lugdi

This rice beer, famous in Manali, got its mention in the Bollywood blockbuster movie Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani. Lugdi, also sometimes made of barley, is available in the snow-blanketed Himalayan slopes. The drink is crude, strong and a great body warmer.

5. Burans

Native to the Uttarakhand Himalayas, burans or buransh is a bright red drink made from the petals of rhododendron flowers. This drink, popular among Garhwali and Kumaoni people has antioxidant properties and can help in fighting mountain sickness. It is also known to check liver, kidney, heart and skin ailments.

6. Zutho

Zutho is one of the rarest rice wines with a fruity odour, and the process of preparing it is exclusively known to Angami Nagas. This local Nagaland drink is made with sprouted rice grains and thus has a flavour much different from other rice wines.

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These are only a few of the long list of Himalayan drinks available in India. Some other similar drinks include Zawlaidi of Mizoram, Xaj and Judima of Assam, Kiad of Meghalaya and Chuwarak of Tripura, among others.