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| time to collect some fresh palm wine |
Travel to Epe through the Lekki Expressway and you can't miss what is arguably a very good place to go and to buy fresh palm wine in Ijebuland. Some joints can be found on the left side along the road after it splits from the one going to the Free Trade Zone. These are small shelters made of wood and branches and, in the background, mud huts on the fringe of the bush that borders the marsh where palm trees grow and can be tapped easily. You can't miss the joints advertised by 5 liter plastic jerricans hung to the nearby trees or wooden sticks planted along the road. Alternately, if you don't need that much you can get it in 1.5 liter water bottle.
Some joints have a small shed where people can stop to taste the local production of palm wine while listening to the eponymous music from the fifties or sixties with guitar, drums and voice. A lively sort of music but peaceful and immune to the stress of time because drinking palm wine subjects the body to a comfortable feeling of warmth and stops the time from flying.
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| how many liters do you need? |
Palm wine is the result of the fermentation of the juice collected by tapping it from a certain palm tree. A hole is made into the trunk and a bottle is stuck into it to collect the liquid that will flow into it. It is a natural drink, not processed, just naturally fermented with the heat and the air. It ferments rapidly and the alcohol degree increases by the hour. Initially sweet and white, with an light after taste of boiled egg, it progressively looses its sweetness to become stronger. The fact that it is unprocessed makes it palatable to some Evangelists who otherwise would not consume alcohol. In any case, make sure to open lightly the seal of the container because the fermentation generates a lot of gas and can make the container leak or possibly explode under the pressure.
I personally prefer it pure rather than mixed with anything else because a mix is making it much more potent. But regardless how you drink it, it is worth trying once.
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