Banana wine is a fruit wine made exclusively from bananas. Banana plant 2

It is different from

banana beer Banana beer is an alcoholic beverage made from fermentation of mashed bananas. Sorghum, millet or maize flour are added as a source of wild yeast. Etymology In Uganda, banana beer is known as ''mubisi'', in DR Congo as Kasiksi, in Kenya as ''urw ...

, which has a long tradition and great cultural significance in East Africa. Blocker et al. (2001) wrote a chapter on "Banana Wine" in the book ''Alcohol and temperance in modern history: an international encyclopedia'', though this is slightly confusing, as they define what is traditionally referred to as banana beer as being banana wine. The data they present on ''Production Techniques'' and ''Social Practices and Rituals'' relates to the latter and not to what is commonly known as banana wine. In Tanzania, banana wine is made commercially by

fermenting Fermentation is a metabolic process that produces chemical changes in organic substrates through the action of enzymes. In biochemistry, it is narrowly defined as the extraction of energy from carbohydrates in the absence of oxygen. In food p ...

peeled, mashed, ripe bananas. Water (to dilute the rather thick banana mash), wine

yeast Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are estimated to constit ...

and sugar is added to the "banana mash". The traditional banana beer processing (as described in the banana beer page and in Blocker et al. (2001)) is different from commercial banana wine processing. For example, the process of making banana wine used by Banana Investment Ltd. is as follows: #Ripe bananas are peeled and put in plastic barrels filled with water. #The barrel contents are then pressed (mashed) and banana mash transferred to large metal pots and boiled for several hours, forming a base of

juice Juice is a drink made from the extraction or pressing of the natural liquid contained in fruit and vegetables. It can also refer to liquids that are flavored with concentrate or other biological food sources, such as meat or seafood, such as ...

and

pulp Pulp may refer to: * Pulp (fruit), the inner flesh of fruit Engineering * Dissolving pulp, highly purified cellulose used in fibre and film manufacture * Pulp (paper), the fibrous material used to make paper * Molded pulp, a packaging material ...

. #The boiled banana mash is strained and sugar added to the leftover juice and boiled again. #The boiled juice is left to cool. #Wine yeast is added to the cooled, sweetened banana juice and placed in plastic fermentation tanks for 15 to 20 days, depending on product. #The fermented liquid is diluted with sterilized water, bottled and then shipped for distribution. In commercial production, ‘Cavendish’ bananas are used, while in informal production, a variety of

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

s, including both cooking and beer

East African Highland bananas Matoke, locally also known as matooke, amatooke in Buganda (Central Uganda), ekitookye in southwestern Uganda, ekitooke in western Uganda, kamatore in Lugisu (Eastern Uganda), ebitooke in northwestern Tanzania, igitoki in Rwanda, Burundi and ...

, ‘ Pisang Awak’, ‘

Gros Michel Gros Michel (), often translated and known as "Big Mike", is an export cultivar of banana and was, until the 1950s, the main variety grown. The physical properties of the Gros Michel make it an excellent export produce; its thick peel makes it re ...

’ and apple bananas are used. Commercially produced banana wine is a clear, slightly sparkling alcoholic beverage with a longer shelf-life than banana beer, which is spoiled easily and therefore not stored for long periods. Depending on the strain of yeast and amount of sugar added, the sweetness and alcohol level in the final product is variable. Production of banana wine is mostly at a small-scale level, though attempts have been made to bring it up to industrialized production, and there are commercial producers of banana wine (e.g. Arusha-based Banana Investment Ltd). Since the early 2000s, attempts have been made to expand banana wine production to other countries where the crop is prevalent. The Philippines government has sought to expand a local banana wine industry, while India has produced both award-winning banana wines and research into expanding production.

References

External links

Banana winery at your doorstep – Arusha Times On The Web
{{Banana Agriculture in Rwanda Banana drinks Central African Republic cuisine Fruit wines Rwandan cuisine Drugs in Rwanda