SHARBATS -
ALL ABOUT LOCAL
FLAVOURS
By : RUCHIKA GUPTA - Vice President, Gulabs
P
ick a glass, add
some flower or fruit
flavoured syrup,
ice and water; and within
minutes you have a refreshing
drink ready to beat the heat,
or to just rejuvenate yourself.
Sharbats or syrups, as many
would call it, draws its
root from the Arabic word
“sharba” which means “a
drink”. The early beginnings
of this beverage are said to
be from the Middle-Eastern
countries that eventually
gained immense popularity
in the Indian subcontinent
during Mughal Emperor
Babur’s reign.
The entire idea of creating a
sharbat is quite fascinating.
It captures the rich flavours,
and aroma of many fruits,
flowers or a combination of
several of these ingredients
in a bottle, making it easy
to use and providing an
occasional flavourful escape
from a regular glass of water.
Additionally, depending on
the properties of the sharbat,
its use is not just restricted
in a glass of water. Many use
it to make milkshakes, ice-
creams, and cocktails or even
as an additive in desserts.
With people experimenting,
the possibilities of creating
delicacies using a bottle of
sharbat are truly endless.
to 50°C in summers, a chilled
glass of sharbat becomes the
ready-to-go drink for many.
It is not the ice cubes in the
beverage that add to the
rejuvenating experience,
but the actual flavour of the
fruit or flower from which
the sharbat has been made;
be it the tanginess of lemon
or the refreshing after-
taste of mint. With sharbats
becoming a
part of many
It has seen that
households,
with time and Sharbats are
and the rising
e a s y a c c e s s no longer
awareness of
to resources, limited to
using natural
the variety of the fl avours
ingredients, it’s
flavours in
available in
important that
which sharbats
even a bottle
a r e a v a i l a b l e the Middle-
preserving fruit
i s g r o w i n g East and
and flower
every minute. Eastern parts
Sharbats are no of Asia but are f l a v o u r s i s
prepared with
longer limited
soon growing the right mix
to the flavours
of natural raw
available in the into a global
materials, and
Middle-East and beverage
is not just a few
Eastern parts of
Asia but are soon growing drops of artificial essence in
into a global beverage. sugar syrup.
With each state having their
own speciality of flowers N o w, u n l i k e c o f f e e o r
and fruits, everything from c h o c o l a t e f l a v o u r e d
sandalwood, rose, lemon beverages that come with
to jasmine, guava or even additional baggage of side
passion fruit is now available effects on health, sharbats
are lighter, flavourful and
in sharbat.
enriching. It’s not a very
In a tropical country like India, well-known fact, but the
where temperatures rise up extracts with which many
As you might have gauged by
now, it is the sheer simplicity
and versatility of the product
that has contributed to
its immense popularity.
Moreover, in this fast-paced
world, a bottle of sharbat
stored in one’s refrigerator
becomes a quick beverage
to enjoy with your family or
friends and using it is merely
child’s play.
Drink Asia
21
March-April 2019
of the traditional flavours
of sharbats are made, are
highly therapeutic in nature.
Each come with their own
set of medicinal properties
that benefit digestion, skin
and even carry antioxidant
properties. This was and this
is one of the many reasons
why sharbats have thrived
to maintain their shelf space
in many stores across the
globe. Well, when you get
to satisfy your palate and
take care of your body, why
wouldn’t one want to have
such an experience!
While industries of
carbonated drinks,
synthesised energy drinks
and essence continue to
thrive, it won’t be long
before people around the
globe realised the damage
it is causing to the health
of many. With the growing
awareness of the medicinal
benefits that comes stored
in a bottle of sharbat made
from natural ingredients,
it is not very far into the
future, when people will
start opting these over their
canned bottles of calories.
We are already going back
to our roots with many
of our lifestyles and food
preferences, and choosing
sharbats is just another step
away.