The Adventure of Arrack by Michelle Gunawardana

The Adventures of Arrack tells the tale of how Ceylon Arrack came to be. From fragments of records and the travelogues of explorers, traders and invaders who sailed to Lankan shores, it seems that the island’s coconut Arrack is centuries old, making it one of the oldest distilled spirits in the world. But is was only in 1924 that a small, family-owned company pioneered the modern process of coconut Arrack distillation. The book follows the fortunes of the family company as it bore many a sling and arrow with the zeal of a true pioneer, to produce a truly unique Sri Lankan product that has more than stood the test of time.