Drink something new every day - part one

Drink something new every day

If you went through my previous articles, you know that Madeira is full of great activities, astonishing events, gorgeous nature and lovely food. It includes my favourite dessert queijada, tosta mista snack or main dish such as espada with rice. Though, there is not just a special food that Madeira has. There are also special drinks. They are incredible! You would never imagine what ingredients can be mixed!

Drink something new every day

If you went through my previous articles, you know that Madeira is full of great activities, astonishing events, gorgeous nature and lovely food. It includes my favourite dessert queijada, tosta mista snack or main dish such as espada with rice. Though, there is not just a special food that Madeira has. There are also special drinks. They are incredible! You would never imagine what ingredients can be mixed!

I will introduce some of them, however, keep on your mind that there is alcohol in almost all of them.

Poncha

Is there another way of how I should  start this article better than starting with poncha? Poncha is the most typical drink from Madeira, I would say. I have never tasted it anywhere else. I have seen it only in Madeira, so far. The taste of poncho is very similar to the taste of vodka with juice, however poncha is much stronger.

There are many kinds of poncha but there are some which are the most traditional ones. I would name poncha regional and pocha pescador. This dring is made of fruit (either lemons, oranges or maracuja) which is completely smashed so one gets just the juice. There is a lot of Aguardante (which is a drink with 50% of alcohol). This is why you can get poncha only in Madeira, because as long as I know, you can by a bottle of Aguardante just in Madeira. The drink is really traditional, people call it a firewater rum of Madeira. It is made of a sugar cane. Next, you mix it with other ingredients like sugar and honey. It is usually served as a 200-millilitre drink. Even though people drink it like if it were a soft drink, be really careful how much you consume.

Poncha costs around 2,50 Euros. There are many places in Funchal and outside of Funchal where you could get poncha. I know that in Rei de poncha (in Funchal) they probably do not have the most typical poncha, but they have got some special flavours which tastes great. I can name Kiwi poncha or Black poncha which consists of black vodka.

One of the most famous places where to drink poncha is in Serra da Aguua (outside of Funchal) where you will drink poncha, eat peanuts and you will be dropping its shells on a floor. Bring a piece of paper and leave a message there!

Picture: Pocha

Pé de cbara (Foot of a goat)

Pé de cabra is an original name for a drink which sounds unreal. It brings many different liquids together and you would probably never think of mixing them together.  I do not even now whether you would feel like tasting it yourself. But I believe it is worth it.

When I was in Madeira, I was told I cannot leave the island without drinking this “goat” drink. I kept asking: “But what is that?” People did not want to tell me. Once I got to place where I was suggested immediately tasting it. So I ordered one. As it was my first time drinking Pé de cabra, I just asked for a small one.

Then the brown drink came and when I tasted it, I had to say it was not bad at all. So then I was “allowed” to know what it is made of. I am going to describe it now, but please, if you have never drunk it, go and give it a try. I know you might start thinking that you would never drink anything like that as it may seem disgusting, but it is worth tasting, I must repeat. It consists of dry Madeira wine, it is mixed with dark beer and there is also some cocoa/chocolate. When it is served, it is cold. So do not imagine a hot drink. It is nicely refreshing in a hot day in Madeira. Though, it has got some alcohol, so drink it carefully.

Picture: There is Madeira wine in Pé da cabra

You can get a smaller glass or bigger one and the price is around three Euros per drink.

Nikita

Nikita is also a drink which I drunk for the first time when I was in Madeira. Again, you would not believe that if you mix all ingredients which I am going to put “on the list” now, it can be actually a good drink. This drink can be prepared with or without alcohol. So if you travel to Madeira with children, let them get this typical drink.

Nikita consists of the following ingredients: pineapple juice, white wine, sugar, vanilla ice-cream, pineapple and beer. Would you believe that? Would you even get an idea that this can be actually mixed so you could get you cocktail?

Picture: Nikita drink

Nikita is served cold, obviously (as there is some ice-cream in it). It is refreshing but it is also quite heavy if you have just finished your plate full of food and you are not hungry anymore.

The price of Nikita is approximately the same as when you order Pé de cabra, so it should cost around 3 or 3,5 Euros. You can get it almost anywhere (also in Funchal or outside).

What will you get?

I recommend you getting a drink per day. Remember that in most of the drinks alcohol is included. So do not drink too much. As you can see, there are some mixes which you would not even imagine.

If you travel with children, ask whether they could get the alcohol-free version. It would be a pitty not to taste it!

Picture: There is even chestnut liiquor.

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