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Alcoholic drinks from India

Prasannā (प्रसन्ना), clear grain liquorप्रसन्ना

Prasannā is a clear grain liquor named in Kautilya's Arthaśāstra and in Ayurvedic texts. The Arthaśāstra makes it from flour, a pulse-and-rice ferment called kiṇva and a set of spices; the Suśruta Saṃhitā calls it the clear upper layer of surā. This is a reconstruction from old texts; one lab made a Bhāvaprakāśa version, fermented it for 5 days and distilled it.

Fully documentedAlcoholic drinks12 days

Recipe

Amounts from a sourceAmounts are the Arthaśāstra's own, in its measures (āḍhaka, prastha, droṇa, karṣa). A 1994 lab reconstruction followed a different recipe, from the Bhāvaprakāśa, in equal parts of Navarai rice, yavadhanya, haritakī and jaggery with 10 plantains.
Flour (piṣṭa)12 āḍhaka[artha-shama][prasad2006]
Kiṇva (ferment)5 prasthaKiṇva is made from 1 droṇa of boiled or raw black gram (māṣa) paste, three parts more rice and 1 karṣa of morata (Alangium)[artha-shama]
Spice powders (sambhāra) of pāṭhā, lodhra, tejovatī, elavāluka, honey, grape juice, priyaṅgu, dāruharidrā, black pepper and long pepper5 karṣa of each[artha-shama][prasad2006]
Bark and fruit of putraka[artha-shama]
Decoction of madhūka (mahua) mixed with granulated sugar, for colour[artha-shama][prasad2006]
Starterother: kiṇva, a ferment of black gram paste and rice

Total time across the recorded steps: 12 days

Start
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What changes: Black gram paste, rice and morata are mixed into a ferment

Step 1 of 6
Make the kiṇva ferment from black gram paste and rice
Time
Not documented
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented

Boiled or raw black gram paste, three parts more rice and a little morata. Output: kiṇva.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Prasannā is a clear grain liquor named in Kautilya's Arthaśāstra and in Ayurvedic texts. The Arthaśāstra makes it from flour, a pulse-and-rice ferment called kiṇva and a set of spices; the Suśruta Saṃhitā calls it the clear upper layer of surā. This is a reconstruction from old texts; one lab made a Bhāvaprakāśa version, fermented it for 5 days and distilled it. Made in 6 steps over 12 days. The longest step, steep camphor and spices in the distilled prasannā (karpūrāsava, modern practice), takes 7 days (Alam M 1994).

Key numbers
Main step7 daysReported[alam1994]Steep camphor and spices in the distilled prasannā (karpūrāsava, modern practice)
AciditypH 4.3–4.6Measured[alam1994]Steep camphor and spices in the distilled prasannā (karpūrāsava, modern practice)

What makes this one different

Prasannā is the clear part of a grain liquor, made with the kiṇva ferment and spiced. Surā is the whole brew. In the Arthaśāstra, maireya is made from a sour gruel or bark decoction with jaggery, not from flour and kiṇva.

Related ferments

Variants

  • Bhāvaprakāśa recipe (kādambarī madya)Navarai rice, yavadhanya, haritakī and jaggery in equal parts with 10 plantains, fermented 5 days and distilled in the 1994 reconstruction.
  • White surā (śvetasurā)The Arthaśāstra says the same spices as for prasannā are added to white surā.

Safety

Karpūrāsava is recorded here as a medicine formula, not a drink, and its amounts are left out on purpose. The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne calls camphor highly toxic. Swallowed, it can cause seizures within 90 minutes, and 0.5–1 g is considered a lethal dose for a child. Do not make or drink karpūrāsava.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

The Arthaśāstra (book II, chapter on the superintendent of liquor) lists medaka, prasannā, āsava, ariṣṭa, maireya and madhu, with recipes for most. The Suśruta Saṃhitā (Sūtrasthāna 45) gives the medical properties of prasannā among the wines and spirits.

Microbes
No study we found names its microbes.
  1. [rch-camphor] The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne, Clinical Practice Guidelines, Camphor poisoningweb
  2. [artha-shama] Kautilya, Arthashastra, trans. R. Shamasastry 1915, book II, chapter 25 (The Superintendent of Liquor), pp. 168–171; scan on archive.orgarchive
  3. [sushruta] Sushruta Samhita, trans. Kaviraj Kunja Lal Bhishagratna 1907, vol. 1, Sutrasthanam ch. 45 (Madya varga), p. 458; scan on archive.orgarchive
  4. [prasad2006] Prasad G.P., Bhuyan G.C., Nagalakshmi V. et al. 2006, Contribution of Kautilya Arthasashtra towards dravyaguna, rasasastra and bhaishajyakalpana branches of Ayurvedic medicine, Ancient Science of Life 26(1–2):26–38paper
  5. [alam1994] Alam M., Dasan K.K.S., Bhima Rao R. 1994, Standardisation of karpurasava, Ancient Science of Life 14(1–2):49–52paper