Kafir Beer

Kafir Beer. (kae'-fer beeyr')

The traditional beverage of the Bantu-speaking people of Africa.  It was traditionally prepared from millet (Panicum milaiceum) steeped for 24 hours, packed in cloth bags to germinate for another 48 hours, and then sundried.  The malted grains were mashed with raw grains, brought to a boil, cooled in open air, and fermented by wild yeasts.  It was first brewed commercially in Salisbury in 1908 (then Rhodesia, later Zimbabwe).  It is presently made in South Africa from fermented malted sorghum, which is known locally as kafir corn.  Elsewhere it is prepared from a mixture of malted sorghum and malted barley or, as in Nigeria, with the addition of gari, a starchy cassava preparation.  This beer is neither hopped nor filtered and, hence, contains large amounts of particulate matter.  After initial fermentation it is pasteurized, and a secondary fermentation is induced by priming and reyeasting.  It is sold in an active state of fermentation and officially holds 3 percent alcohol, but because the beer is still fermenting, the alcohol content may vary considerably.