From here, Hanusz takes up the story of the humble kretek, a product enjoyed at all levels of Indonesian society. Invented in Java a little more than a century ago, kretek first took the form of a wad of tobacco and a sprinkling of cloves wrapped in a corn husk and tied up with a piece of red cord. We learn that the idea came to Haji Jamahri, a resident of Kudus in Java, who suffered from chest pains brought on by asthma. By adding cloves to his hand-rolled cigarettes, his symptoms ebbed and kretek was born. Today, the industry supports an estimated 10 million people, from tobacco and clove farmers to factory workers, many of whom still roll the cigarettes by hand.
Most manufacturers keep their sauce recipes secret.
The author also delves into the history of early manufacturers, such as the Nitisemito family. No one had ever bothered to chronicle the rise and fall of Indonesia's first commercial kretek maker. Neither, it seems, were the current leading manufacturers very helpful in producing the book. None offered sponsorship, a fact Hanusz points out to those who would otherwise feel uncomfortable about a book dedicated to smoking. May. Health Ministry officials tried to have the book removed from shelves in local bookstores.