PHOTO CREDIT
travelandleisureindia.in 71
From above: Feni is
a trademark of the
region and contains
approximately 40 per
cent alcohol; relish
pork belly and
other Goan dishes
when here. Opposite:
The Cashew Trail
is a one-of-a-kind
experience offered by
Park Hyatt Goa
Resort and Spa.inspired Goan degustation dinner, paired with
Portuguese wines. It is said that the Portuguese
have as many ways to cook cod fi sh as there are
days in a year. Their most preferred meals are
a robust refl ection of the country’s roots—quite
evident in most of Goa’s cuisine. And you don’t
even need feni to accompany your meal. With
old Goan music playing live in the background
and dishes such as cod fi sh balls (sumptuous
and far from overpowering) and caldo verde
with pork sausage (incredibly delicious and
interesting potato-based soup) on the table,
nostalgia was certainly the theme. The custard
tart for dessert was served piping hot, right
out of the oven. As is the tradition, I sprinkled
it with cinnamon and icing sugar, and had
it with my coff ee, as I called it a day.A CASHEW FARM
Fuelled for cashew probably sounds a little
cliché, but this holds us in good stead for a walk
through the Valpoi Cashew Farm of Cedric and
Mac Vaz of Madame Rosa Distillery, Goa’s largest
feni maker. Yellow, red, and reddish orange,
these beautiful fruits carpeted the ground.
It was here that I learnt my fi rst lesson of
picking the fallen, ripe fruits. Never plucking
them off the tree. Interestingly, cashew trees
were brought to Goa by the Portuguese many
moons ago and, today, locals have taught the
world how to use each part of the fruit.TALE OF THE FENI
There is no better time to come to Goa than early
summer, when cashews are harvested and the
production of feni kicks off. The aroma of the
ripened fruits whiff ed through the air, spilling
over from the harvesters to the drinkers, and we
rolled up our pants and stomped cashew apples
with our feet. With the juice sticking to my feet,
I sat by enormous copper stills, sealed with
anthill clay, in which the juice was simmered.
No, you don’t drink the stomped cashew, nor is
it later turned into feni. As the vapour of cashew
apple juice swirled out of a thick hose, we tasted
urak, the fi rst fl ush of feni, which unlike the
real deal, is cloudy. Charlie, our guide, lined our
glasses with a nutmeg leaf over quarter a pour
of urak, and balanced it out with Limca. “Now
drink,” he grinned. We unquestioningly lifted
our Limca-spiked urak and it was delicious.
The alcohol content is approximately 14 per cent
less compared to feni, which has roughly 45 per
cent! Charlie shared that it takes exactly 90 litres
of cashew apple juice to make 30 litres of urak.
Ferment it extra and you get feni.travelandleisureindia.in 73