Gin Squares

FIRST JOURNEYS - 80 GINS AROUND THE WORLD - PIN 62 OF 80

MARULA GIN, Belgium

(inspired by the African fruit, Marula)

AROUND THE WORLD, ONE BOTTLE AT A TIME,

PHILEAS FOGG WOULD SURELY APPROVE

An African fruit, some supposedly drunken baboons and elephants, and a Belgian gin inspired by one of Africa's best stories.

Let's get our fruit on today and talk about an African fruit, the marula, while sipping a Hanky Panky.

Is it true? Do animals really get drunk eating this fruit, or is it all just a very good story?

There is no denying elephants love marula fruit, which is why the trees are often called Elephant Trees. Elephants eat the fruit, as well as the bark and branches, and can leave quite a trail of destruction behind them.

The fruit is small, yellow when ripe and has white flesh with a tart, sometimes sweet flavour. It is also rich in vitamin C and has been used traditionally to make juices, jams, oils and alcoholic drinks. When the fruit is ripe it contains plenty of sugar and can ferment naturally, which is where the famous drunken-animal story comes in.

If you grew up watching South African television, you may remember Jamie Uys' Animals Are Beautiful People, his 1974 wildlife documentary. The film included the now-famous scenes of baboons, elephants, giraffes and warthogs apparently getting drunk after eating fermented marula fruit.

It was hilarious, unforgettable and, as it turns out, not exactly a scientific documentary!

The scenes have since been questioned and there is good reason to be sceptical about how naturally intoxicated the animals actually were. Elephants in particular would need to consume an enormous amount of fermented fruit to reach an intoxicating level. The film also has a reputation for staging or manipulating some of its wildlife scenes.

The film is also connected to another South African favourite. Uys went on to make The Gods Must Be Crazy in 1980, so the two films are often remembered together.

The story is so good, though, that it was bound to inspire someone to put marula into a bottle.

Marula Gin was created by Belgian entrepreneur and gin lover Thomas Wuyts, who had already founded Gintin, an Antwerp-based company specialising in gin events and tastings. The idea was to take this unusual African fruit and turn it into something that people could experience for themselves.

The gin is made in Belgium, using marula fruit sourced from Namibia alongside botanicals from around the world. The current recipe includes juniper from Tuscany, coriander from India, lavender from Provence, rose petals from Bulgaria and orange blossom from Spain. It is triple distilled and bottled at 40% ABV.

I rather like the fact that although the gin is Belgian, its inspiration is firmly African. The marula fruit comes from Namibia and the whole story revolves around this little fruit, the animals that love it and the folklore that has grown up around it.

The original Marula Gin has since been joined by Marula Pomegranate, Café Marula liqueur and limited editions, including an Oloroso-finished gin. The brand is still trading today and its current range even includes ready-to-serve cocktails, including a “Drunken Elephant” made with Marula Gin and grapefruit.

This is one of those bottles that manages to connect three places rather nicely — Belgian gin-making, Namibian fruit and a very South African story.

Whether the elephants were ever actually drunk is still debatable. The story, however, is clearly still having quite an effect.