Thomas: "Most of the arrack imported into this country is distilled from rice, and comes from Batavia. It is but little used in America, except to flavor punch; the taste of it is very agreeable in this mixture. Arrack improves very much with age. It is much used in some parts of India, where it is distilled from toddy, the juice of the coconut tree". In Indonesia, arrack is often created as a form of moonshine. Methanol poisoning Indonesian arak containing methanol has caused both local and tourist deaths from methanol toxicity. Arak plays a socially and culturally important role in Balinese society, where it is often diluted with water, shared with friends, or drunk in small quantities during religious ceremonies. However, with the growth of tourism, the need for cheap alcohol, and increases in alcohol import taxes and regulations, arak became the spirit of choice for many mixed drinks in bars. With the growth in arak production and popularity, more deaths from methanol poisoning were reported. Arak is usually sold on the black market, without regulation, where methanol is sometimes added to make the arak stronger Philippines A Filipino term for distilled and undistilled alcoholic drinks in general is alak, derived from the Arabic word "arrak". The term "arak," though, is specifically used in Ilocano. They can be derived from palm sap (notably coconut, nipa palm, or kaong palm), sugarcane, or rice. Native alcohol that are traditionally distilled include lambanóg and laksoy, which are made from the sap of palm flowers. The sap is harvested into bamboo receptacles similar to rubber tapping, then cooked or fermented to produce a mildly-alcoholic coconut toddy called tubâ. The tubà, which by itself is also a popular beverage, is further distilled to produce lambanóg (or laksoy, if made from nipa palm sap). The Italian explorer, Antonio Pigafetta, stated that the arrack that he drank in Palawan and nearby islands in 1521 was made from distilled rice wine. However, he was likely referring to pangasi, a rice wine which is not distilled. Sri Lanka (Ceylon-Arrack) Sri Lanka is the largest producer of coconut arrack and up until 1992 the government played a significant role in its production. Other than water, the entire manufacturing process revolves around the fermentation and distillation of a single ingredient, the sap of unopened flowers from a coconut palm (Cocos nucifera). Each morning at dawn, men known as toddy tappers