Muratina traditional brew

Sausage tree fruits. [Courtesy]

Kikuyu and Meru are two different communities that have one thing in common: muratina. In many gatherings, be it dowry negotiations or traditional weddings, the men held horns with their traditional brew.

Muratina is a traditional beverage that has cultural and social significance served during cultural celebrations, ceremonies, or gatherings. The main ingredient is a fruit from a special tree known as the 'sausage tree', also called Kigelia, a name coined from the appearance of the fruit that is sausage-shaped and dangles from the twigs.

Sausage fruits are not only used to make muratina but also other traditional drinks like the Kamba's kaluvu. This fruit is poisonous to humans but not to animals like baboons, elephants and giraffes. To make muratina, the three ingredients required are sugarcane juice, sausage tree fruit and honey. The sausage fruit is opened and cut into pieces which are then sun dried for a few hours.

After that they are boiled in water for about 30 minutes. They are yet again sun dried and later mixed with sugarcane juice and honey. The mixture is put in a jerry can, put in a warm place and left to ferment to at least four days. The longer it stays, the higher the alcohol concentration and more potent the overall taste.