Updated
Waragi is Uganda’s local distilled spirit, traditionally made from fermented bananas, cassava, millet or sugarcane, and often compared to gin. The best-known commercial brand, Uganda Waragi, is a gin-style spirit sold in bars across the country and commonly mixed with tonic or soda. Home-distilled waragi, sometimes called enguli, is cheap and widely drunk in villages, but unregulated batches can be dangerous: contaminated brews have caused deadly methanol poisoning.
How waragi is made
Traditional waragi starts with a fermented brew, often tonto banana beer or a mash of cassava, millet or sugarcane. This is heated in a drum, and the vapour is passed through a pipe cooled by water, where it condenses into a strong spirit. Commercial producers redistil and filter the spirit and add botanicals such as juniper to create a gin-like flavour. The name is often said to come from “war gin”, a term from the colonial era, though the exact origin is uncertain. See our guide to tonto banana beer.
Safety
Stick to sealed, branded bottles from bars and shops. Home-made spirits can contain methanol from poor distillation or adulteration, and outbreaks of poisoning have killed dozens of people at a time in Uganda. The government banned spirits sold in small plastic sachets in 2019 to reduce cheap, high-strength drinking. Drink in moderation, especially before a long drive or a gorilla trek, as altitude and dehydration make hangovers worse.
Waragi in Ugandan social life
Waragi is common at celebrations, in bars and at gatherings, and local brews are sometimes part of ceremonies and hospitality in rural areas. On a Buhoma community walk near Bwindi, visitors can often see how banana beer and local gin are made and taste a little. See our guides to the 3-day gorilla and cultural safari and Kampala nightlife.
How to drink it
Commercial waragi is usually served with tonic, soda or juice, with lime. Lodges and bars also sell local beers and imported spirits. Save celebrations for after your gorilla trek, where the permit costs US$800, or US$600 in April, May and November. See our guide to Ugandan food markets.
Frequently asked questions
Traditionally bananas, cassava, millet or sugarcane, distilled into a strong spirit.
Branded, sealed bottles are; avoid unregulated home-distilled spirits.
Usually with tonic, soda or juice and lime.
Often, on the Buhoma community walk.
