Palm sap tapped at dawn, cloudy and sour by afternoon, drunk from licensed toddy shops along India’s southern coasts. Kerala and Tamil Nadu shops serve it with fiery side dishes, and the whole business runs on how fast it ferments.
It ferments in the pot on the tree before anyone handles it, so there is nothing to prepare; sale is also licensed in the Indian states where it is drunk.
What goes into it
- coconut or palmyra palm sap
- nothing else
How it is made
A tapper climbs the palm before dawn, slices the flower spathe and hangs a pot to catch the sap. Yeasts already on the tree and in the pot start fermenting it immediately, so it is sweet at sunrise, pleasantly alcoholic by mid-morning and vinegary by evening. It is sold the same day it is drawn.
How long it takes: hours; sour by the afternoon of the day it is tapped
How it is eaten
From a glass at a toddy shop with kappa, fish curry and beef fry.
History
Tapped from coconut and palmyra palms along the southern coasts; licensed toddy shops in Kerala and Tamil Nadu serve it with fiery side dishes.
Frequently asked questions
What is Toddy?
Toddy is a wine & spirit from India: palm sap tapped at dawn, cloudy and sour by afternoon, drunk from toddy shops. Tapped from coconut and palmyra palms along the southern coasts; licensed toddy shops in Kerala and Tamil Nadu serve it with fiery side dishes.
How is Toddy made?
A tapper climbs the palm before dawn, slices the flower spathe and hangs a pot to catch the sap. Yeasts already on the tree and in the pot start fermenting it immediately, so it is sweet at sunrise, pleasantly alcoholic by mid-morning and vinegary by evening. It is sold the same day it is drawn. It takes hours; sour by the afternoon of the day it is tapped.
Can I make Toddy at home?
No, and the atlas gives no method for it. It ferments in the pot on the tree before anyone handles it, so there is nothing to prepare; sale is also licensed in the Indian states where it is drunk.
What goes into Toddy?
Coconut or palmyra palm sap, nothing else.
How is Toddy eaten?
From a glass at a toddy shop with kappa, fish curry and beef fry.
