Table · Galle Fort
Arrack is distilled from the sap of coconut flowers, aged in halmilla wood, and almost unknown outside the island. Inside the Fort, after dark, it makes sense.
The experience
Arrack is made from toddy — the sap tapped from unopened coconut flowers, collected twice a day by climbers who move between palms on ropes strung fifteen metres up. Fermented within hours, then distilled, then aged in vats of halmilla, a local hardwood that gives it its colour.
It has been made here for well over a thousand years, which makes it considerably older than rum, and the Dutch shipped it across their empire from Galle. Almost none of it is exported now, so this is essentially the only place to drink it well.
The good stuff is aged, sipped neat or with soda and a wedge of lime, and bears no relation to the harsh young bottles sold at every wine store. A tasting in one of the Fort's colonial rooms walks through three or four expressions and the way it is made.
What to expect
Good to know
It works best after the sunset walk on the walls, which puts you in the Fort at the right hour anyway.
These are arranged for a handful of people in a colonial room, not a bar. Book ahead in season.
The aged expressions are worth carrying. Duty free at Colombo stocks less than the Fort does.
Tastings are generous and the Fort lanes are dark. Arrange a driver rather than walking to Unawatuna.
Ready to book?
An arrack tasting after the rampart walk makes a complete Galle evening. Tell us your dates and we will line the two up.
