Changaa (Changaa or Chang’aa) – Kenyan moonshine based on millet, corn or sorghum with the addition of any toxic chemistry available to the moonshiner. The name of the drink can be translated as “kill me quickly.” First, all components are fermented (fermented), and then distilled in oil barrels. The result is alcohol with a strength of 20-60%.
Features. The Changaa drink is made at home from literally everything that comes to hand – often methanol, various technical liquids, kerosene, gasoline, etc. are added to it for strength. This alcohol is cheaper than bread and is common among the poorest sections of the Kenyan population. Its use has repeatedly led to poisoning, serious illness, even blindness and death. Of course, the production of Kenyan moonshine was illegal for a long time, but this did not stop anyone.
Harmful chemistry is added so that the drink acquires the so-called “kick” (kick), that is, it does not just intoxicate, but literally knocks you down due to poisoning with toxic substances.
In 2010, the Kenyan government legalized the production of changaa in an attempt to limit the use of harmful ingredients. Under the new law, distillate must be contained and distributed exclusively in glass containers with a label warning of possible harm to health.
Changaa is not allowed to be sold to anyone under the age of 18, nor can it be distributed through vending machines. For the manufacture of a counterfeit drink with prohibited ingredients, a moonshiner faces a fine and / or imprisonment for up to five years.
Characteristic loud
Changaa moonshine is driven all over Kenya. In the slums of large cities, its production is “protected” by criminal authorities, and in small towns and villages, the drink is made in separate farms.
The cost of 200 ml of changaa varies from 20 to 40 cents. This is the cheapest, and therefore the most popular alcohol in the country, most of whose population is below the poverty line.
As already mentioned, technical fluids are added to the composition of the changaa for “intake”, and water is often taken from the nearest gutter. It is one of the most dangerous and dirty spirits in the world.
In 2000, in a Kenyan village, residents drank moonshine mixed with methyl alcohol, and by the morning 150 people died and 20 more lost their sight. Moreover, even civil servants and policemen were among the victims.
Origin of the name
It is believed that the word “Changaa” is translated as “kill me quickly”, but there is another version.
In colonial times (1920-1963) local alcohol “pelele” was distributed in Kenya. When the British government banned it, the women who delivered fresh milk to the city began to illegally sell alcohol, skillfully hiding the distillate among other bottles. Once one of these smuggling was covered by a police squad, the officer put all the bottles along the road and asked – “Whose milk is this?”.
The fact is that in Africa there is no single language, even within the same country there can be several dozen of them. The policeman asked “Maziwa ya nani?” and the answer was “Ma Chag ng’a?” Therefore, the law enforcement officers decided that the found drink was called Chang’aa, and it has been preserved since then.