Keeping Culture Alive Through the Art of Lihing Making - by Lorena Binisol
A table of nine, a bottle of Lihing , and a journey of flavour discovery. The food pairing session turned out to be fun, engaging and full of delicious surprises. A quiet village workshop recently turned into a vibrant cultural classroom, where tradition flowed as richly as the rice wine itself. During a two-hour session held at Kg Pogun Tagazo, participants stepped into the heritage craft of making Lihing, the traditional rice wine of the Kadazan community. The experience was part of the Knowledge Transfer Initiative, a programme dedicated to preserving indigenous knowledge and passing it on to future generations. The evening began with a meaningful sharing about our culture, before diving into the story of Lihing and its cultural significance within the community. For the Kadazan people, Lihing is far more than a drink. It is a cultural heirloom. In earlier times when paddy farming sustained communities and harvests were abundant, surplus rice was transformed into this distinctive wi...