"Bangui and Koutoukou" (by Jerry Englehart Jr.)

A short walk from the main area of a small village a single man works extracting Bangui from fallen palm trees, which need to be horizontal, and are brought down by human intervention. The smoke is used to draw the Bangui to the area where a hole is carved out. This allows the Bangui to drain into a gas container underneath.

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:22:50 +0000

A short walk from the main area of a small village a single man works extracting Bangui from fallen palm trees, which need to be horizontal, and are brought down by human intervention. The smoke is used to draw the Bangui to the area where a hole is carved out. This allows the Bangui to drain into a gas container underneath.
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After extracting the Bangui from a palm tree, it is store in a variety of plastic gas containers. The Bangui has an alcohol content straight from the palm tree with a sweet taste. Using a variety of different gas containers the Bangui is fermented for additional time to obtain a higher alcohol percentage, which is unknown, and becomes increasingly bitter in taste. The optimum and also maximum period for Bangui to ferment, to a full body, is 48 hours.

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:23:28 +0000

After extracting the Bangui from a palm tree, it is store in a variety of plastic gas containers. The Bangui has an alcohol content straight from the palm tree with a sweet taste. Using a variety of different gas containers the Bangui is fermented for additional time to obtain a higher alcohol percentage, which is unknown, and becomes increasingly bitter in taste. The optimum and also maximum period for Bangui to ferment, to a full body, is 48 hours.
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These men work at this distillery, which is hidden 3 kilometers from their village, extracting Bangui and using it to create a liquor known as Koutoukou. The Bangui is extracted nearby and fermented for 4 days. The distillery is run much like the ones from decades ago in America. The Bangui heats in a rusting barrel over a wood fire and the vapor rises and travels through a tube running through three barrels of water to cool and recondense the vapor into a pure alcoholic liquid. They can produce from 20 to 24 liters of Koutoukou in a day. They obtain 3 to 4 batches depending on the original amount of Bangui in use, with the first batch having the highest alcohol content, again unkown, and decreasing with each successive batch. The Koutoukou sells for 700 franc per liter or about the equivlalent of 1 dollar and 50 cents, with each successive batch selling for less per liter.

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:24:42 +0000

These men work at this distillery, which is hidden 3 kilometers from their village, extracting Bangui and using it to create a liquor known as Koutoukou. The Bangui is extracted nearby and fermented for 4 days. The distillery is run much like the ones from decades ago in America. The Bangui heats in a rusting barrel over a wood fire and the vapor rises and travels through a tube running through three barrels of water to cool and recondense the vapor into a pure alcoholic liquid. They can produce from 20 to 24 liters of Koutoukou in a day. They obtain 3 to 4 batches depending on the original amount of Bangui in use, with the first batch having the highest alcohol content, again unkown, and decreasing with each successive batch. The Koutoukou sells for 700 franc per liter or about the equivlalent of 1 dollar and 50 cents, with each successive batch selling for less per liter.
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Before placing the Koutoukou in its final gas container for transportation, by bike or moto, to the village and the nearby town's local bars; the Koutoukou runs through cotton to filtrate any metal particles that have come loose in the process. The pipe makes a gurgling sound just before the Koutoukou is about to exit and pour through the cotton.

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:25:17 +0000

Before placing the Koutoukou in its final gas container for transportation, by bike or moto, to the village and the nearby town's local bars; the Koutoukou runs through cotton to filtrate any metal particles that have come loose in the process. The pipe makes a gurgling sound just before the Koutoukou is about to exit and pour through the cotton.
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Koutoukou's final storage, used for sale, is in a variety of used liquor bottles. This bottle of Koutoukou is known to be original because no traditional medicines have been placed inside the bottle along with the liquor. A person slowly sips Koutoukou from a glass or takes a quick shot, whichever is their preference. Each shot of Koutoukou sells for 100 cent franc, which is equal to about 20 cents in the American dollar.

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:26:07 +0000

Koutoukou's final storage, used for sale, is in a variety of used liquor bottles. This bottle of Koutoukou is known to be original because no traditional medicines have been placed inside the bottle along with the liquor. A person slowly sips Koutoukou from a glass or takes a quick shot, whichever is their preference. Each shot of Koutoukou sells for 100 cent franc, which is equal to about 20 cents in the American dollar.
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In the villages, when a person does not prefer to drink the Koutoukou at the bar, they can have the requested amount placed into a smaller used, flask sized container, for easy transportation. Again nobody really knows the true alcohol content of the Koutoukou, but a person can tell whether the portion they drank was a first batch or successive one by the amount it "warms" your stomach only seconds after it reaches your stomach. This is, again original Koutoukou, without any traditional African medicines added.

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:26:41 +0000

In the villages, when a person does not prefer to drink the Koutoukou at the bar, they can have the requested amount placed into a smaller used, flask sized container, for easy transportation. Again nobody really knows the true alcohol content of the Koutoukou, but a person can tell whether the portion they drank was a first batch or successive one by the amount it "warms" your stomach only seconds after it reaches your stomach. This is, again original Koutoukou, without any traditional African medicines added.
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Each bottle of Koutoukou here is different. There is an original, one for headaches, one for constipation, one for Malaria, one for an upset stomach, and others. Each medicine also gives the Koutoukou a distinctly different color; from a pale yellow to a deep red.

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:27:39 +0000

Each bottle of Koutoukou here is different. There is an original, one for headaches, one for constipation, one for Malaria, one for an upset stomach, and others. Each medicine also gives the Koutoukou a distinctly different color; from a pale yellow to a deep red.
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Here a man adds Nescafe instant coffee to his Koutoukou. This practice is along the same lines as American college students who combine energy drinks with their liquor.

Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:28:25 +0000

Here a man adds Nescafe instant coffee to his Koutoukou. This practice is along the same lines as American college students who combine energy drinks with their liquor.
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