VOA新闻杂志2022--利用大象粪便制造酒精饮料

Elephant Waste Used to Make Alcoholic¹ Drink

Les Ansley has developed an unusual kind of gin - a clear alcoholic drink that is flavored with fruits and seeds.

Some of this gin's ingredients have passed through the digestive system of elephants.

Les Ansley gets some of the raw materials by going into the South African wilderness², finding elephant waste, smelling it, and then storing it in a bag to use when making the high-end alcohol.

The elephants do the work, finding the herbs and fruit that give the gin its taste, explained Ansley.

Launched in 2018, Indlovu gin - named after a local word for elephant - is sold in the United States, Canada, Germany, Switzerland, Japan and Taiwan.

Ansley and his wife Paula export about 1,500 bottles a month. Since the start of this year, two of South Africa's biggest sellers, Woolworths and Pick 'n' Pay carry it.

"The elephants, because they digest so little ... they have a very quick gut³ in-transit time, low gut bacteria, and very poor absorption," he told the Reuters news agency.

Ansley added, "they get to choose the best leaves and the best fruits and the best flowers and the best plants."

As well as the usual gin ingredients such as juniper and citrus, the dried and washed plant matter from the elephants change with the season and the climate. This gives different tastes to different batches⁵. The date and location of the waste collection are given on the bottles produced, the distiller said.

The couple give 15 percent of the profits to an elephant orphanage⁶ - a place that cares for young elephants that have lost their parents. This is another reason that buyers might be interested in the product, besides its unusual nature.

But how does gin that is made from elephant waste taste?

Bartender Johanna Jones described it as "earthy."

"That's what makes it different," Jones added.

Words in This Story

ingredient –n. one of the things that are used to make a food, product, etc.

absorption – n. the act of taking in (something, such as a liquid) in a natural or gradual way

batch⁴ – n. an amount of something that is made at one time

distiller – n. a person or company that produces strong alcoholic drinks (such as whiskey) by distilling them

1 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

2 wilderness   

n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

3 gut   

n.[pl.]胆量；内脏；adj.本能的；vt.取出内脏

参考例句：

• It is not always necessary to gut the fish prior to freezing.冷冻鱼之前并不总是需要先把内脏掏空。
• My immediate gut feeling was to refuse.我本能的直接反应是拒绝。

4 batch   

n.一批(组，群)；一批生产量

参考例句：

• The first batch of cakes was burnt.第一炉蛋糕烤焦了。
• I have a batch of letters to answer.我有一批信要回复。

5 batches   

一批( batch的名词复数 )； 一炉； （食物、药物等的）一批生产的量； 成批作业

参考例句：

• The prisoners were led out in batches and shot. 这些囚犯被分批带出去枪毙了。
• The stainless drum may be used to make larger batches. 不锈钢转数设备可用来加工批量大的料。

6 orphanage   

n.孤儿院

参考例句：

• They dispensed new clothes to the children in the orphanage.他们把新衣服发给孤儿院的小孩们。
• They gave the proceeds of the sale to the orphanage.他们把销售的收入给了这家孤儿院。