Local Drinks

1. चहा

   chaha

   Chaha (tea)

   Usage

   The Marathi word for tea is चहा, not the Hindi चाय. It normally means the strong sweet brew of leaves, water, milk and sugar boiled together; ask for "dudh nako" to have it without milk. Spiced versions with ginger or cardamom exist.

2. सोलकढी

   solkadhi

   Solkadhi (kokum and coconut-milk drink)

   Usage

   A fixture of the Konkan coast (Sindhudurg, Kudal, the Malvani belt). Pale pink, sour and salty, drunk after a fish meal as a digestive. It is made from आगळ, a salted kokum extract.

3. कोकम सरबत

   kokam sarbat

   Kokam sarbat (kokum cooler)

   Usage

   A summer drink made with kokum, water, sugar and salt. Making this sarbat is a Konkan speciality. The fruit is also called ratamba or bhirand.

4. ताक

   taak

   Taak (buttermilk)

   Usage

   curd merely thinned with water is not taak. Proper taak is what remains after curd is churned with water and the butter is lifted off. Good for settling the mouth after a hot meal

5. मठ्ठा

   maththa

   Mattha (spiced buttermilk)

   Usage

   Taak seasoned with cumin, salt and coriander. A popular pairing with misal and jilbi, worth ordering alongside hot misal.

6. लस्सी

   lassi

   Lassi (sweet curd drink)

   Usage

   A drink made from curd (दह्यापासुन बनविले जाणारे एक पेय), especially popular in Punjab. Widely sold at tea and fruit shops in Maharashtra too; the locally rooted drinks are taak and mattha.

7. उसाचा रस

   usaacha ras

   Usacha ras (sugarcane juice)

   Usage

   Shops pressing and selling it are called रसवंतीगृह or गुऱ्हाळ. Most ST bus stands in Maharashtra have one, making it easy to find during a long bus trip. Usually pressed with ginger and lime.

8. नीरा

   nira

   Nira (unfermented palm sap)

   Usage

   Distinguish it from taadi (palm toddy). Sap tapped before sunrise is nira; after sunrise it ferments into taadi. Nira is non-alcoholic and sold even in dry areas and state outlets. नीरा is also a village name in Pune district.

9. सरबत

   sarbat

   Sarbat (sweet chilled fruit or flower drink)

   Usage

   A category word, not one drink. Menus write it as "<fruit> sarbat", so knowing the word makes them readable — kokam sarbat is one instance. It comes from Persian sharbat, with basil seed, rose water, sandalwood, bael, hibiscus, lemon and orange among its bases. Sometimes served as a concentrate to be let down with water

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