Forbes Magazine has an interesting article called "An Indigenous Beer Style Crowned Best In Africa." It refers to the beer style known as umqombothi. The article says "The beer blends a traditional sorghum umqombothi with a mixed fermentation farmhouse ale. This blend was aged for two years in wine barrels. It is a ground-breaking beer that marries ancient African brewing tradition with the country’s up and coming craft beer scene." Soul Barrel Brewing won Best Beer in Africa at the 2025 African Beer Cup, an annual Cape Town event. Forbes allows a few free article reads if you want to take a look: https://www.forbes.com/sites/emsauter/2025/06/09/an-indigenous-beer-style--crowned-best-in-africa/
I tried a beer that was brewed in Cape Town called Mqomboti on the menu didn’t have much of a description. I was at Marco’s African Place ( (marcosafricanplace.com) I wish I’d written down what the server told me about it. I just remember him saying it gets made on an open flame outside the restaurant. Wikipedia’s description (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umqombothi) and picture looks like what I drank. It sounds like it varies a bit region to region throughout Africa. It was a smoky, sour drink but looked and felt like milk. It’s a weird description I know, but I think it was part of the experience drinking it from a special vessel, like a bowl/pot, that made me enjoy it. I’d recommend trying it if you see it on a menu.
Very interesting, thanks for the description. Now what style would BA call this one? I looked up Marco's and that's what they say, "Home-Brewed African Beer." I wish they would take over a defunct Red Lobster and bring the experience to the US. Of course they might have to substitute alligator for crocodile...
