Feni (misspelt fenno or fenny, Indo-Portuguese; fénnim) is a spiritous liquor indigenous to the state of Goa, India. The two most popular types of feni are Cashew feni and Coconut feni, depending on the ingredients; however, other varieties and newer blends are also sold by distillaries. The small-batch distillation of feni has a fundamental effect on its final character, which still retains some of the delicate aromatics, congeners, and flavour elements of the juice from which it was produced. The word feni is derived from the Sanskrit word , in Konkani; फेन or फेण & in Konkani; fenn; which means "froth"; thought to come from the bubbles that form when the liquor is shaken inside a bottle or poured into a glass. It is generally accepted that coconut feni (palm toddy) was produced before it, and feni followed the same process until distillation was introduced by Europeans. Coconut palms are abundant along the western coastline of the Konkan region in south Asia/ India, whereas the cashew tree was an exotic species of crops, imported by the Portuguese in Goa and Bombay, from what was colonial Brazil in south America. There is ambiguity about when and who first produced a fermented beverage of cashew fruits, to make the distilled spirit of feni. The feni consumed in southern Goa is generally of higher alcohol content (43–45% abv) as compared to the feni produced in northern Goa. Commercially packaged feni is available at 42.8% abv. Preparation Cashew feni In the traditional method of making cashew feni, only tree-ripened cashew apples that have fallen are picked and taken for the crush. The cashew apples are de-seeded and then dropped into the stomping area. This area is called a collmi and is usually a rock cut into a basin shape. The cashew apples are stomped to release the juice. Stomping has now gradually been replaced by the use of a press called a pingre (cage). The pulp is then hand-patted into small mounds traditionally using a particular vine, nudi, which is snaked around it to hold it together while a heavyweight (typically a boulder) is placed on top. The juice produced through this second extraction process is known as Neero/Niro, and is refreshing to drink; however, it is not used in the fermentation process generally for making feni. The first juice extract, obtained by stomping cashew apples, is transferred traditionally in a large earthen pot