Is Airag safe to drink?

The exact taste varies a bit, depending on the method of production. It’s one of the few alcoholic beverages in the world that’s also a potent source of vitamins and minerals. What’s interesting about Airag is the fact that a person who is lactose intolerant can drink it.

Why does mares milk produce Airag?

Fermentation destroys the lactose in milk, converting it into lactic acid, ethanol, and carbon dioxide. This makes Airag acceptable for lactose intolerant people, which includes many Mongolians. Without fermentation, mare’s milk contains significantly more lactose than milk from cows or yaks.

What is fermented mare’s milk called?

Kumis
Kumis is made by fermenting raw unpasteurized mare’s milk over the course of hours or days, often while stirring or churning. (The physical agitation has similarities to making butter.) During the fermentation, lactobacilli bacteria acidify the milk, and yeasts turn it into a carbonated and mildly alcoholic drink.

What is Mongolian fermented horse milk?

Airag, also spelled ayrag, the Mongolian word for fermented horse milk, an alcoholic spirit; see kumis, the Turkic name under which it is more widely known throughout Central Asia. Airag, Dornogovi, a sum (district) in Dornogovi Province, Mongolia.

Is fermented horse milk alcoholic?

Kumis is a mildly alcoholic drink made from fermented mare’s milk, popular across Central Asia.

What kind of milk do Mongolians drink?

Airag
Travel Guide. Airag is considered by most Mongolians to be the national beverage of the country. Many visitors may have heard of Airag before either as kumis or as what the drink is; fermented mares milk.

How is airag made?

Airag, also called Kumis or Ayrag is a fermented dairy product made from raw mare’s milk. The milk is fermented by a combination of lactic acid bacteria and yeast in a horse-hide container called a “saba”. Since the milk is fermented; Airag is suitable for lactose intolerant people.

Does airag have lactose?

The airag samples contained 0.10–3.36 % lactose, 1.44–2.33 % ethyl alcohol, 1.08–1.62 % lactic acid and 0.12–0.22 % acetic acid.

Who drinks mare milk?

Some people in Russia and Asia have been drinking mare’s milk for more than 2,500 years. They turn it into a drink called kumis, or fermented mare’s milk. Kumis started off as a drink to help heal many health problems, like digestive issues and tuberculosis, and is said to taste sour, sweet, and bitter.