Efforts by the Goa government to secure Geographical Indication (GI) tag for urrak on par with that of feni need to be appreciated. Both urrak and feni are like nectar for Goans and hot favourites of tourists. Unfortunately, the quality of these two drinks in recent years has dropped significantly due to adulteration and being sold in the market at exorbitant rates, bringing a bad name to Goa.
The GI tag will, to some extent, hopefully serve to put a stop to this nefarious practice. However, there is a downside to the GI tag for urrak, as urrak loses its flavour after the 3-4 month cashew season and unlike feni, doesn’t mature when stored. Bottling urrak and marketing it might therefore prove counterproductive. People will still prefer to drink the homemade stuff, which will continue to be sold unofficially.
