Boza

Boza, also bosa, is a fermented beverage originating from the Middle East and made in parts of Southeast Europe, Central and Western Asia, Caucasus and North Africa. It is a malt drink made by fermenting various grains: wheat or millet in Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, North Macedonia, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina and barley in Ancient Egypt, maize (corn) and wheat in Turkey. It has a thick consistency, a low alcohol content (around 1%), and a slightly acidic sweet flavor.

Etymology

According to Turkish etymological dictionary and '' Nişanyan Sözlük'', ''boza'' is etymologically either Persian or Turkic in origin.
The dictionary states that Persian ''būza'' or ''buχsum'' and Old Turkic ''buχsı'' or ''buχsum'' are cognates, yet it is unclear from which language it was ultimately derived and which one took it as a loanword. Francis Joseph Steingass says it is Persian and Ármin Vámbéry says it is an ancient Turkish word found in '' Kutadgu Bilig''.

The oldest written account of the drink is under the name ''buχsum'' and is attested from the 1073 Middle Turkic dictionary '' Dīwān Lughāt al-Turk'' by Mahmud al-Kashgari. Modern Turkish word ''boza'' is believed to be cognates with the Old Turkic ''buχsı'' or ''buχsum''. The drink under the name ''boza'' is first attested in Abu Hayyan al-Gharnati's early 14th century Kipchak Turkic work ''Kitab al-'idrak li-lisan al-'atrak''

History

Fermented cereal flour (generally millet) drinks have been produced in Anatolia and Mesopotamia since the 9th or 8th millennia BCE, and Xenophon mentioned in the 4th century BCE how the locals preserved and cooled the preparations in earthen pots that were buried. There are references mentioning boza-like "fermented (ground) millet drink" in Akkadian and Sumerian texts; the beverage is said to be respectively ''arsikku'' and ''ar-zig''. In the 10th century CE, the drink was called ''Boza'' and became common amongst Central Asian Turkic peoples. Later it spread to the Caucasus and the Balkans. It enjoyed its golden age under the Ottomans, and ''boza''-making became a common trade in towns and cities.

Until the 16th century, boza was drunk freely everywhere, but the custom of making the so-called Tartar boza laced with opium brought the wrath of the authorities down on the drink, and it was prohibited by sultan Selim II (1566–1574). He describes a type of non-alcoholic sweet ''boza'' of a milk white color usually made by Albanians.

In the 17th century, Sultan Mehmed IV (1648–1687) prohibited alcoholic drinks including ''boza'', and closed down all the ''boza'' shops. This prohibition would be reinforced and then loosened several times in the history of the empire. The 17th century Turkish traveler Evliya Çelebi reports that ''boza'' was widely drunk at this time, and that there were 300 ''boza'' shops employing over a thousand people in Istanbul alone.

In this period, boza was widely drunk by the Janissaries in the army. It contained only a low level of alcohol, so as long as it was not consumed in sufficient quantities to cause drunkenness, it was tolerated as a warming and strengthening beverage for soldiers. As Evliya Çelebi explained in the first volume ("Istanbul") of his '' Seyahatname'' (Travelogues), "These ''boza'' makers are numerous in the army. To drink sufficient ''boza'' to cause intoxication is sinful but, unlike wine, in small quantities it is not condemned." In the 19th century, the sweet and non-alcoholic ''boza'' preferred at the Ottoman palace became increasingly popular, while the sour and alcoholic type of boza went out of style. In 1876, brothers Haci Ibrahim and Haci Sadik established a boza shop in the Istanbul district of Vefa, close to the then center of entertainment, Direklerarası. This ''boza'', with its thick consistency and tart flavor, became famous throughout the city. It is the only ''boza'' shop dating from that period still in business today, and is now run by the founders' great-great-grandchildren.
File:Istanbul Vefa Bozaci 4901.jpg, Istanbul Vefa Bozaci Shop from across street
File:Istanbul Vefa Bozaci 4878.jpg, Istanbul Vefa Bozaci distribution area
File:Istanbul Vefa Bozaci 4888.jpg, Istanbul Vefa Bozaci Consumption area
File:Istanbul Vefa Bozaci 4898.jpg, Istanbul Vefa Bozaci Glass used by Atatürk
File:Istanbul Vefa Bozaci 4881.jpg, Istanbul Vefa Bozaci Transfer to smaller vessel
File:Istanbul Vefa Bozaci 4896.jpg, Istanbul Vefa Bozaci Transfer to smaller vessel

Production and storage

Boza is produced in the Balkans, notably Bulgaria and most of the Turkic regions, but not always using millet. The flavour varies according to the cereal which is used. Measuring boza samples made from maize, wheat, and rice flours, researchers determined an average of 12.3% total sugar, 1.06% protein, and 0.07% fat.

Boza spoils if not kept in a cool place, therefore boza fermenters in Turkey did not sell boza during the hot summer traditionally, instead selling alternative beverages such as grape juice or lemonade. They produce it in the summer now due to increased availability of refrigeration, and revenue from high demand. Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Bulgaria, Albania, and North Macedonia produce boza as a refreshing beverage year-round.

In popular culture

* Mevlut Karataş, the main character in Orhan Pamuk's 2014 novel '' A Strangeness in My Mind'' (''Kafamda Bir Tuhaflık''), is a boza vendor.
* A popular drink in Bulgaria, usually accompanied by a Banitsa or Gevrek
* Serbian group Zana in title track from album ''Nisam, nisam'' mentions boza.

Similar beverages

Other beverages from around the world that are traditionally low-alcohol and lacto-fermented include:

* Kvass
* Bragă
* Chicha
* Ibwatu
* Mageu
* Oshikundu
* Toddy
* Rivella
* Tejuino
* Tongba

References

External links

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{{African cuisine
Types of beer
Fermented drinks
Balkan cuisine
Caucasian cuisine
Central Asian cuisine
Middle Eastern cuisine
North African cuisine
Ottoman cuisine
Bulgarian drinks
Bosnia and Herzegovina non-alcoholic drinks
Albanian drinks