National Punch Day

National Punch Day is celebrated on September 20th of each year.
Punch is the term for a wide assortment of drinks, both non-alcoholic and alcoholic, generally containing fruit or fruit juice. The drink was introduced from India to England in the early seventeenth century; from there its use spread to other countries. Punch is typically served at parties in large, wide bowls, known as punch bowls.

The word punch is a loanword from Hindi panch (meaning five) and the drink was originally made with five ingredients: alcohol, sugar, lemon, water, and tea or spices. The original drink was named paantsch.The drink was brought to England from India by sailors and employees of the British East India Company in the early seventeenth century.

Today, soft drink manufacturers distribute many types of “fruit punch” beverages. These are usually red colored drinks. Despite the name, most brands contain only a small fraction of actual fruit juice, the major constituents being sugar or corn syrup, citric acid, and artificial flavors.