CULTURAL NOTES
Richard Kinnud
It is the general term for wine native to
Ifugaos. It is usually made from
glutinous rice though some native fruits and rootcrops can be processed to wine
and also called bayah. (In writing, many would spell it without the letter “h”
but under the rule of writing as pronounced, I think it should be written with
the consonant in its end.)
The process of making bayah is “iwa”. Thus, attaching prefixes, the person or
people in the process are the “mun-iwa” (also the future tense of it as a verb
- will still do the iwa) or “nun-iwa” (the past tense when used as verb).
The process starts with the pounding of the
glutinous rice (daya’ot or dayakkot in the Ifugao languages). Tuluy botok (three bundles) to hin-hongol
(five bundles in the Ifugao way of measuring rice harvests) would usually make
a hin-iwa (good for one processing). The
more, of course, the more rice wine is produced.
The next process is the cooking. If the glutinous rice is of the dark variety,
it is preferred that this is roasted first in a vat. In making the ratio for the rice and water,
the mun-iwa makes sure that it is not too watery when the rice is a little over
half-cooked. At that point, the rice
would be spread on ligawu (winnower) for cooling down.
The cooling process will give time for other
procedures. One is getting banana leaves
and neutering them over fire. These
leaves will be used later in wrapping.
Also, the binokbok (native yeasts) is also pulverized. The binokbok is usually processed or procured
earlier. It is made from onwad (a native
herb), finely ground rice, mother yeasts, and ginger juice.
After cooling down, the powdered yeast is sprinkled
and mixed delicately with the half-cooked rice.
The amount of binokbok to be mixed is usually on the ono’nong
(intelligent estimate) of the mun-iwa.
The good ono’nong is what usually distinguishes the “maphod di pun-iwa
na” (good rice wine maker) from the rest.
The mixture is then transferred to a labba or
tudung (these are holders made of rattan and/or bamboo). The labba is prepared by spreading the
neutered banana leaves onto it before transferring the rice. The mixture is then carefully wrapped with
the banana leaves. The holder containing
the mixture will be hanged with one end lower than the other preferably in a
room or at a corner away from disturbance.
After a day, a very small hole is punched on the
lowest end of the mixture. This will
allow the initial juice from the mixture to flow out. This juice, called the tonoh, will be
collected in a clean container. The
mun-iwa will just let it flow until no more tonoh is expected, usually two or
three days. The mixture will then be
transferred into clean and dry jars and the tonoh will be remixed to it. The jar or jars will be covered tightly with clean banana
leaves and kept again in a place where it should not be disturbed until mapgot
(the term for matured wine.)
It is again upon the ono’nong of the wine maker
when would he or she would extract the wine.
It could be from five days to two weeks.
On a appointed day, the wine maker can extract the initial rice wine and
when desired, add more liquid for fermentation.
This process is called tomyang. A
hin-iwa can produce at least four bottles of undiluted rice wine. A bottle is usually of the 4 x 4 of the
popular ginebra brand. The additional
liquid for fermentation is usually the mixture from sugar heated until it
becomes dark, dissolved and boiled in the desired amount of water. The process can be repeated until no
fermentation is expected. The pure wine
(initial extraction) is called the pinahapa while the last wine juices usually
bitter in taste is called the hubul.
In earlier times, as related by elders, bayah is at
the core of festivities hosted by abled households. In these festivities, days are designated for
preparing the wine and for extracting them at the homestead of the hosts. This is the reason why the couple hosts are
called the “bumayah” (future tense) or “bimmayah” (past tense). Households in
neighboring hamlets can also prepare their own rice wine simultaneously with
the hosts. One of the climaxes is a day
designated for drinking the wine coupled with dancing. In the morning of that day, it is expected
that guests from everywhere come and go around the village especially in
hamlets where wine was expected. This is
the day of the “gotad” which is actually an eve of a grander day of lunching.
This kind of festive occasion is unheard of as
hosted by household these days. There
could be similar events such as weddings but to some elders who saw “bayah” of
old, what society has today are incomparable.
Even bayah, the wine, at times takes
backstage. For one, the process of
making as discussed earlier is very wearisome and takes time. In occasions where alcoholic drinks can be
appropriately served, it is more convenient to purchase those that are readily
available in stores. Additionally, the
production of glutinous rice, the main ingredient is also tedious. And, it also happens that those who do
consume wine prefer the smoother taste of the ones in wine shops than the
natively manufactured ones.
At any rate, bayah remain to be icons of a distinct
culture. For the wine, the elements are
a produce of the native land and the elaborate process is a labor of
passion. These make it a nectar of love
that should remain to be cherished.
As a festival supposedly hosted by households, they
are symbols of abundance, of sharing, of good neighbor relations, of prizing
relatives, and many other values. It
could be for the good that the present society remembers these by using it as
names of barangay, municipal and provincial fiestas. It would be an opportunity for the
generations to examine culture.
Incidentally, Kulpi ad Lagawe (fiesta of the
capital town of Ifugao) and Imbayah ad Banaue (fiesta of the home to the more
known rice terraces of Ifugao) are still ongoing with many of the cultural
parts happening this week. This corner
greets the i-Lagawe, and the i-Bannawer/Ifannawor, and every other else
celebrating their town fiesta – Happy festivities! Hopefully, the young would indeed look into
the good cultural and social values and uphold them, aside of course from the
economic opportunities that these give in terms of commerce and tourism.
