A new tea craze is sweeping through Guinea. It is not the brew itself that is new, but its name: Al-Qaeda. People gather most evenings to chat over a cup of al-Qaeda tea.
| "Yummy! Tastes like jihad!" |
The local non-alcoholic beverage has people pouring into the night-time drinking holes of the country's capital, Conakry, for what clientele call the tea's explosive and restorative properties. Aziz Mouna Camara, a proprietor of one drinking establishment, says the fermented concoction gets its name from its volatile nature. "When the beverage has boiled to a certain level, it sparkles and gives explosive-like rumbling sounds when you open the pot. This is why some call it B52, American bombardment, Bin Laden and others call it al-Qaeda," he says.
Previously, the tea was known as "tresor de la mer" or sea treasure, but its new name has many more people drinking it, Mr Camara says.| The wonders of marketing... |
Mr Camara says that unlike China where the tea originates, he ferments his brew for eight days. A local herb kainkaliba, some syrup, 20 packets of tea bags, sugar and honey are added to the concoction.
| ... along with a couple bottles of gin, a handful of chili peppers, two heads of poisonous reptiles, and a half gallon of antifreeze... |
"After eight days we can drink it. It gives a tonic-like flavour and this is good for man's organism," Mr Camara says.
| The very thought of drinking it gives me an organism... |
The establishment's master al-Qaeda tea drinker calls himself "Saddam Hussein", after the former Iraqi leader, and says he downs up to five litres a day.
| "Well, not anymore. That was back when I had kidneys..." |
Theories about al-Qaeda's medicinal properties have also lured people in for a cup of tea. "I used to have frequent constipation. But since I started taking this beverage, my bowels are now free, I pass urine freely also, and everything's alright with my body," one al-Qaeda drinker said.
| "Now, nobody tells me I'm full of shit!" |
"When I take al-Qaeda tea there is positive result in so far as my respiratory system is concerned. I feel very much at ease. Before I had some respiratory problems," another said.
| "The gasping that comes with the first sip builds a strong diaphragm, y'know..." |
But whether it is its name or its alleged healing properties, the popularity of Guinea's al-Qaeda tea looks set to rise and rise. |