Quiet Motion’s ‘ADA’ | BTS

In a search for traditional drinks, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic, Quiet Motion and host Vanessa Pilon visited South Africa as part of a worldwide project to track down the origins of local beverages.  We visited a number of township brewers, small-scale wine farmers and a dairy where traditional Maas is still produced – Maas, commonly known as amasi in South Africa, is a fermented milk beverage and has a consistency similar to that of yoghurt or buttermilk, a creamy white colour and a distinctly sour taste.

We also learned about Umqombothi, a traditional South African beer. In Xhosa culture, umqombothi is used to commemorate the return of young males known as abakwetha following ulwaluko, an initiation and religious male circumcision. This beer is particularly significant when people contact their ancestors, the amadlozi, and it is also very important in the social context, therefore it is frequently consumed during traditional weddings, funerals, and imbizos.

Taking a road-trip out of Cape Town to the tiny hamlet of Wuppertal in the Cederberg Mountains, we also filmed an area where Rooibos tea is cultivated for export around the world and hung out at the Mount Nelson Hotel, where they have a tea sommelier running regular tea tastings alongside their famous high-tea fare.