In 2016 Assam government vowed to make Assam’s heritage liquor global, but even after 8 years, only two heritage liquor introduced with much difficulty are struggling to create local demand, forget about national and international recognition
Recently, a resident of Guwahati was contacted by his friend from Hyderabad to send him a gift: A liquor manufactured and produced in Meghalaya, named after the popular place Cherrapunji. This liquor is internationally popular and is also expected to be launched in Japan soon. Talking about Assam, the Assam government’s dream of promoting traditional local brews remains just that—a dream—even after eight years of the government claiming it could compete with Goa’s Feni and Russia’s Vodka.
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Narrating the dream in the state’s annual budget for 2016-17, the then state finance minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma (now the chief minister), had said that while tribal brews were healthy and possessed high medicinal values, the government was looking at conducting proper research on these brews, ensuring standard manufacturing practices, and packaging them attractively so they could compete with Feni and Vodka. However, Sarma did not specify when this dream would turn into reality.
It has now been eight years since the dream was revealed, but not much has been done in the field of heritage liquor in Assam. Hardly any brand produced in Assam is sought after outside the state.
A source in the excise department, speaking to GPlus on the condition of anonymity, said, “There are only two heritage liquor brands in Assam—Xaj and Luklao,” adding that the liquors are not very old and the sales and demand for them are minimal. According to him, Xaj was launched in 2021, followed by Luklao a few months later.
Akash Jyoti Gogoi, an upper Assam-based producer of heritage liquor and owner of North East Agro Products and Services, spoke to GPlus and said, “I was trying to produce a local brew for many years, but I was able to launch ‘Xaj’ in the markets in 2021.”
After Himanta Biswa Sarma’s announcement about making local brews popular, the Assam government introduced a heritage liquor policy in 2017. The policy was notified in May 2017 after amending the Assam Excise Act of 2000. The fee for a license was deliberately kept low at ₹5,000 to encourage people to produce local brews.
Another producer, also trying to create heritage liquor, spoke to GPlus on the condition of anonymity, saying, “The government has kept the same paperwork process for heritage liquor as for Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL). There is no special support other than the lower fee.” He explained that although he had applied for a license some time ago, he is constantly asked for additional paperwork by the excise department.
An excise official added that there are subtle differences in how the two types of liquor are defined and branded. While country liquor is mostly distilled from grains such as rice and barley, traditional liquor typically involves an organic fermentation process, with rice, herbs, and other grains. One results from an industrial mass-production process, while the other suggests a more intimate, community-driven brewing process. Branded country liquor is marketed as a safer option for low-income groups who cannot afford IMFL, while heritage liquors are sold as cultural artifacts aimed at tourists and higher-income consumers in Guwahati’s restaurants.
It should be noted that according to the heritage liquor policy, such liquors can be served in restaurants and sold in retail departmental stores.
Akash Jyoti Gogoi, the owner of Xaj, mentioned that although the heritage liquor policy allows departmental stores to apply for licenses to sell heritage liquor, no departmental stores have been granted such licenses. When some stores tried, they found there was no option or procedure to apply for the license.
An owner of a department store in Guwahati, speaking to GPlus, said, “I checked all the excise department websites, but there is no option to apply for a heritage liquor license for departmental stores,” adding that there are options to apply for IMFL On or Off shop licenses.
An excise official from Kamrup (Metro), speaking to GPlus, said, “There might not be an option on the website, but departmental stores can apply offline on a blank paper, and we will process the request.” The official added that the excise department has been instructed to allow departmental stores to sell heritage liquor.
The excise official further said that the heritage liquor policy provides several benefits to producers and sellers, but stressed that Assam's heritage liquor is not generating sufficient demand. “Unless demand is created both within and outside the state, heritage liquor from Assam will not go global,” said the official, adding that the excise department can only support producers, not promote the product. He suggested that the tourism department might play a role in the promotion process.
An official from the tourism department said that during certain festivals or trade fairs, local brews of Assam are showcased in some stalls. However, since it is liquor, the department cannot actively promote it.
Cashew Feni, for example, has become a nearly 500-year-old Goan legacy. It is so intrinsic to Goa that in 2009, cashew Feni even received a geographical indication (GI) tag. A GI tag certifies that a product is attributed to a specific location, similar to Kashmiri Saffron, Darjeeling Tea, or Dharwad Pedas. Goan Feni was the first Indian liquor to achieve this feat.
The question remains: Can Xaj, Luklao, or any other heritage liquor from Assam ever receive such recognition, or even compete with Feni or Vodka, as dreamt by the Assam government in 2016?
