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The Tale of How Palm Wine Was Discovered

Palm Wine in Calabash Source: classicghana.com

Have you ever tasted fresh palm wine? Did you like it? Do you know how it is made? Do you want to know how it was discovered? After many years of asking, I have got the answers. If you also want to know, stay with me; I will share the answers with you in a few minutes. I promise you will be fascinated by the story behind it.

I am a fan of fresh palm wine. My home is near a village called Egyaebusua. The entire village is surrounded by coconut and palm trees. I know two old palm wine tappers, Opayin Beraku and Opayin Egyir, and they supply me with fresh palm wine.

I once visited Opanyin Beraku’s work site. I seriously needed the fresh palm wine to quench my unexplainable thirst for this god-sent liquor. After riding a motorbike for about 20 minutes, I reached the site. The sight of the process of obtaining the palm wine from the palm tree kindled my curiosity. Waiting for Opanyin Beraku to fill my container with the fresh palm wine, I was flooding my mind with questions. I asked if he knew how and who discovered the process of palm wine tapping. His response was the one I expected, “yɛ nananom na ɛkyerɛ yen”, literarily translated as “our ancestors taught us.”

I was able to quench my thirst, but my curiosity thirsted for answers. After years of seeking without answers, I got the answers when I least expected. On one sunny Sunday morning, reading some old Fante folk stories, I came across the answers that satisfied my curiosity.

How was palm wine discovered?

According to Fante oral tradition, when the Borbor Fante (the original Fante) left Takyiman, on their journey to find a better place to settle. Their King had a celebrated hunter called Ansah. Ansah was one of the King’s hunters who supplied him with meat.

Ansah was also one of the scouts who were sent by the Akomfo (priests) to explore areas before the people moved. He had a dog who followed him in his hunting and scouting duties.

On one faithful day, Ansah, on one of his hunting escapades, came across a fallen palm tree by an elephant. The elephant had unknowingly made a hole in the trunk of the palm tree, with a liquid oozing out through the hole. The dog appeared to be familiar with the liquid and had longed to find one to drink. It quickly got intoxicated by drinking. Ansah, curious about what might happen to his dog, gave it more to drink. He waited till the next day, longing to know what might happen to the dog. He woke up and found his dog in good health. Ansah tasted this wine also. He enjoyed the sweet and yet intoxicating liquor. The sweetness of this liquor made him consume so much that he was in a state of stupor till the next day. The King and his people became worried because his stay in search of meat had exceeded the usual.

Ansah stayed and learned how to tap the palm wine perfectly. He collected some of the palm wine and sent it to the Borbor Fante king. The King, curious about why he had overstayed, questioned Ansah. Ansah presented what he had found to the King. To attest that it was not poisonous, he drank some of the wine and handed it to the King. The King also tasted it. He enjoyed it so much that he did not want to share it with anyone.

He became so drunk after some time that he could barely do anything. The King’s guard became suspicious of Ansah. They thought his discovery was instead a plan to kill the King. He was arrested and killed.

The next morning, the King recovered from his gross intoxication by the sweet wine and asked to see Ansah. The King was informed by his people that Ansah had been killed. He was devasted and ordered those responsible to suffer the same fate. Palm wine among the Akan has been called “Insah” ever since, and it is named after Ansah.

In the Akan language, palm wine is called “Insah fufuo,” meaning “white wine.” The colour white was used to help describe the wine’s colour. This wine is common in West Africa because it is tapped from the palm tree, which is common in the region. It is popularly known as called ‘palm wine’ in the area. It is preferably served in a calabash.

Do you know a different folk story about its discovery? Do your people tap wine from palm trees also? Please share your experience with us.

Written By

Stephen Baidoo is a writer who loves to research about Ghana's past. He brings Ghana's history to life with each unearthed fact and forgotten narrative, transforming dry dates into passionate stories.

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