Bird's Nest Beverage

[Nat]

Hello all

A friend has given me Bird's Nest Beverage to try. Apparently it's made from (surprise, surprise) bird's nests and is really popular with the thai staff at work - it's suppose to prolong life (not that this is an issue for me). That's about all the info I could extract about this product, so before I try it was wondering if anyone else knows more about it and what (if any) obvious effects there are. Thanks

[p1p]

Have taken it many times, both in a drink and as a dessert with a formal Chinese meal. If it is truly Birds Nest it will be from the nests of cave dwelling swifts, quite common in the south of Thailand. Nests are made of spit! (No Typo, that is intended to be a "P" not ...)

It is supposed to prolong longevity and also to increase man's sexual stamina. I must say I have never noticed any difference but I enjoy the mild taste and interesting texture.

Drink it, you have nothing to worry about.

[Nat]

increase man's sexual stamina

Seeings I'm a female won't be able to look out for that effect

It actually is from swifts - managed to get that out of her. Well it's chilling in the fridge so will give it a go.

Thanks

[Thetyim]

Any chance of a swift one ?

[the gentleman]

Hi Nat, I get a basket full given to me every new year of this stuff -Scotch Brand, I have tried it once, no taste really, mushy globules of nothing. Also no increased sexual stamina!, if interested

[TizMe]

Also no increased sexual stamina!, if interested

I had a dozen oysters last night. But only 11 of them worked...

[pnustedt]

There are a number of birds' nest shops around China town in Bkk. My wife buys them whenever we are there.

They look like shredded wheats but cost a fortune. She tells me that they are very good for the eyes and heart. They should be served at breakfast - boil/simmer for a long time (up to three hours) and add an almost raw chcken egg and sugar to taste.

They don't do much for me, pretty bland taste.

[Thetyim]

They should be served at breakfast - boil/simmer for a long time (up to three hours)

Sorry, could you run that past me again.

If I boil it for 3 hours it will be lunch time won't it ?

[p1p]

What time do you get up then??

[pnustedt]

What time do you get up then??

About 4 or 5 a.m. - oh yeah, it gives you insomnia as well!!

[Pink Mist]

you boil in a pot and must also add a rock, when the rock is soft throw the bird's nest away and eat the rock

[markus]

I also tried it. Good taste. No side effects. 50 Baht for a small bottle. Expensive?

[pnustedt]

50 Baht for a small bottle. Expensive?

Birds' nests from the shops in China town are expensive - about 40,000 baht for a small pack, dependant on quality.

They don't come in a bottle - you're obviously taking something else.

[p1p]

The 40,000 Baht is correct for top quality fresh nest. However various companies produce "birds nest" beverages by the bottle, can or even in sealed plastic bags! I have tried several of them and it is debatable how much real birds nest they contain if any. But the gelatinous bits in the drink do resemble the genuine article.

[tampasailor]

various companies produce "birds nest" beverages by the bottle, can or even in sealed plastic bags! I have tried several of them and it is debatable how much real birds nest they contain if any. But the gelatinous bits in the drink do resemble the genuine article.

Bird's Nest is a rare and so expensive that only wealthy people can consumed it. Many people know thai it is a cold "food". In Chinese they call it "Yin".

There are 2 different kinds of Bird's Nest one is the "Cave Bird's Nest" and the other is "House Bird's Nest". It is very difficult to find the "Cave Bird's Nest", because it is generally found in cliffs, overhanging crags and steep deep cliffs. So it is very difficult to get it. Whilst the "House Bird's Nest" can be harvested easily from the roof of houses.

Although we can reach them easily, it is needs to undergo a long laborious cleaning process. Not only that but it has to be soaked for 6 to 48 hours to absorb water to make it soft before it is purified.

The only edible and beneficial Bird's Nest is made by made during the breeding season. The males' swiftlet long thin gelatinous strands from it's salavary gland is wound into a half-cup nest and bonds like quick drying cement. It is beneficial for …

1) Woman because it's prevents internal dryness and hence, make them look younger and free of wrinkles and make their skin smooth and lively.

2 ) Elderly and children it helps to stimulate appetite and aids digestion.

3 ) Patient who has recovered from surgery because it is a unique form of protein and nutrients that help to recover quickly.

4 ) A pregnant woman because it is believed that the baby will have a beautiful and smooth complexion.

You can buy small bottles at 711 for 50bt. Its a bit like thick coconut water with chunks. Hard to believe it is bird spit. Interesting!! I just had a bottle and looked up on google and it brought me to thaivisa 555 of course!!! Google also found the above for me.. Google knows all~!!!

[Gary A]

I have no desire to drink bird spit regardless of the benefits.

[fiddlehead]

A few years ago, my Thai friend took me to his friend who was a manufacturer and seller of this drink.

He showed me the process.

He bought the raw product from the people who climb the ladders and go up where the swallows build their nests and these people raid the nests to take the "rock salt-like" spit or whatever it is they use to hold these nests together. This product is very expensive. (can't remember how much though)

Then he takes that stuff that looks like rock salt and soaks it in water overnight (Perhaps 2 nights, i don't remember)

When this is done, he had a product that was very jell-like, almost like a jellyfish.

He took this product and diluted it greatly (maybe 100 to 1)? with water and put it into bottles that he sold for around 50 baht each i think.

(my memory and the prices and numbers are vague)

I believe he made a decent living doing this but not great.

Many have seen the ladders and ropes on a rock wall in Phi Phi Ley where the birds have these nests and the locals steal them.

I believe it is full of vitamins and perhaps the Chinese people think that it has viagra-like tendencies.

[hanno]

Certainly no vitamins in bird nests. They come indeed from cave dwelling swifts, a number of different species actually. Different species will use varying amounts of other materials to build their nests. The nests of the Edible-nest Swift is pure saliva and thus commands the highest prizes.

As for the soft drinks, I doubt that there is any nest in them, they would cost a lot more otherwise.

[Gary A]

A few years ago, my Thai friend took me to his friend who was a manufacturer and seller of this drink.

He showed me the process.

He bought the raw product from the people who climb the ladders and go up where the swallows build their nests and these people raid the nests to take the "rock salt-like" spit or whatever it is they use to hold these nests together. This product is very expensive. (can't remember how much though)

Then he takes that stuff that looks like rock salt and soaks it in water overnight (Perhaps 2 nights, i don't remember)

When this is done, he had a product that was very jell-like, almost like a jellyfish.

He took this product and diluted it greatly (maybe 100 to 1)? with water and put it into bottles that he sold for around 50 baht each i think.

(my memory and the prices and numbers are vague)

I believe he made a decent living doing this but not great.

Many have seen the ladders and ropes on a rock wall in Phi Phi Ley where the birds have these nests and the locals steal them.

I believe it is full of vitamins and perhaps the Chinese people think that it has viagra-like tendencies.

Some people also eat tiger penis, rhino horns, bear bile and snake blood.

[tampasailor]

fiddlehead

re: friend who was a manufacturer and seller of this birds nest drink.

Thanks for this interesting post. My gf is very much aware of this drink.

I wonder if it's the same in birds nest soup~? Its a part of Thai culture and I am happy that I tried the drink. Its rather pleasant, and there is a webpage on the product above. I am sure if sold in qty by 711 it is probably well tested and ok. I have also eaten some of the bugs available from street vendors under my thai gf's supervision to broaden my horizons so to speak and I am happy to report that I am still alive and surprised by experience.

I remember my first sushi and the aprehension at the first bite. It's the culture that we were brought up with that taught us that certain things were disgusting and its sometimes difficult to change the mindset but when you do your cuturial experience is enriched. Isn't that why we love to travel??

I am soon to leave LOS sadly for a few months but looking forward to visiting countries 65-69 this year. Turkey, Morocco, Russia and Hungry. No doubt I will have some cuture shock there too. I love it~!!!!

GF is trying for her USA tourist visa. Thanks to all the postings here, we have some good ideas on how to do it. Hope she can have a months holiday with me in Tampa~!! back to her in Oct.

enjoy the heat, I'm getten outtta here~!!!

hummm i remember my first fiddleheads in Newfoundland... delicious, like cooked spinach~!!

Newfoundland, now there was some culture shock~! Screech and coke~!! Seal flipper pie~!!

Yes me son~!!! finest kind from round da bay~!!!

[YaiJung]

In Pak Panang, just east of Nahkorn Si Thammarat, there are dozens of multi-story(around 4-6 floors) buildings that are used exclusively for producing bird's spit. The buildings look like rather nice apartment buildings with fancy trim and all. Around dusk gazillions of birds can be seen flying in and out of the upper windows(the lower windows are closed up). Quite a sight. Locals told me the owners do very well. Apparently there is something about this location that the birds really like.

Never tried the stuff myself so can't comment on the taste or effects.

[tampasailor]

In Pak Panang, just east of Nahkorn Si Thammarat, there are dozens of multi-story(around 4-6 floors) buildings that are used exclusively for producing bird's spit. The buildings look like rather nice apartment buildings with fancy trim and all. Around dusk gazillions of birds can be seen flying in and out of the upper windows(the lower windows are closed up). Quite a sight. Locals told me the owners do very well. Apparently there is something about this location that the birds really like.

Never tried the stuff myself so can't comment on the taste or effects.

THIS IS HARD TO BELIEVE AND THE STORY GETS MORE INTERESTING FOUN THIS ON

Paknam Web Thailand Forums > Paknam Web Guidebooks > Thailand News Stories

http://www.thailandqa.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1778

Thai Town Builds Bird Condos

By UAMDAO NOIKORN

Associated Press Writer

AP-NY-11-17-02 2244EST

PAK PANANG, Thailand (AP)--The real estate market may be slumping elsewhere in Thailand, but it's flying high in this small, sleepy town--thanks to the birds.

Enterprising residents are building ``bird condos'' and converting old buildings to accommodate and pamper flocks of swiftlets whose edible nests are proving to be a gold mine for investors.

Although nobody is quite sure why these sparrow-like birds are homing in on Pak Panang, building owners try to keep them coming, adding inducements such as proper temperature, favored feed and even hi-fi systems playing swiftlet songs.

``It's just a matter of luck. There's no other way to explain this. We've seen many times that they flocked into one building and ignored the very next one with the same environment,'' said Chainarong Sawasdeenarunath, the town mayor.

Once happily settled, the swiftlets fashion cup-shaped nests for their offspring from glutinous saliva. For centuries, the Chinese have regarded the nests, often served in a soup, as a delicacy with purported medicinal qualities.

The difficulty of collecting the nests, which are normally found in remote caves, and their scarcity have driven prices up. Locals say a kilogram (2.2 pounds) of bird's nest, which used to cost some 1,300 baht (dlrs 30) three decades ago, costs 60,000-80,000 baht (dlrs 1,380-1,840) in Thailand today.

The price can be twice or three times as high in Hong Kong, a major importer of a product that some believe can do everything from cure cancer to increase sex drive.

The Forestry Department says the area around Pak Panang, 590 kilometers (369 miles) south of Bangkok, the capital, is prime ground for swiftlets because it's close to Thailand's biggest wetlands.

The district's 20,000 human residents have benefited from tourists attracted by the novelty of seeing birds by the tens of thousands blanketing the sky.

``We're planning to turn one road into 'Swiftlet Street' to handle tourists more systematically,'' Chainarong said.

Despite the bird droppings, noise and danger of bird-borne diseases, townspeople see the swiftlets as messengers of hope as Thailand strives to recover from the Asian financial crisis of 1997.

There are already more than 100 bird homes in the town, with half jointly owned by investors from Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Indonesia. However, only about 30 are currently occupied, despite the various lures.

The municipality continues to approve applications for more ``bird condos''--bare, empty structures punctured on all sides by small holes that serve as entrances for the avian residents.

Once a colony settles in, only trained nest collectors are allowed inside because swiftlets are easily disturbed. Collectors must have a soft touch and tread, and their clothes and bodies should not exude strong odors.

Suthi Noppakun, 75, a town resident, said the first nestings occurred about 40 years ago in a storeroom on the top floor of a three-story combination shop and house owned by a merchant.

As time went by, the number of birds has increased so that every month 30-50 kilograms (66-110 pounds) of nests can be collected at each condo, he says.

Suthi said income from the business has enabled him to buy a house in Bangkok.

Even millionaires like Bunkit Leelertphan can't help salivating over the profits.

``I can't see any reason why I shouldn't jump up on the bandwagon. The Hong Kong and American markets are getting bigger. The Chinese market is even more robust,'' said Bunkit, whose company produces a popular herbal toothpaste.

Bunkit paid 2.3 million baht (dlrs 52,870)--an exceptionally high price for real estate in provincial Thailand--last year for a small plot of land to build a five-story building. Three months after construction began, the birds started coming in.

``All I do now is just wait for them to pack the place while putting final touches on the condo,'' he says with a grin.

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