The tradition of drinking preparing, consuming and offering alcohol to guests and deities in India, is an ancient one. there is still a strong culture of fermenting cereals such as rice, barley and millet among tribal communities in central and northeast India, and of tapping toddy palm and extracting the nectar of the mahua flower for fermentation. Protector spirits are offered alcohol among hill communities, particularly in Nepal and Tibet. among Hindus, lord Bhairava is supposedly partial to country liquor. it keeps him appeased. However, these local brews raksi, chhang, mahua are not commercial. they are prepared at home, have a short shelf life and are neither stored nor bottled. and because every home has its own recipe for brewing, there is no consistency in taste or alcohol content. there are exceptions.