A significant majority of Kenyan athletic heroes are Kalenjin and scenes of them receiving a sip of mursik at the airport having returned from international duty form part of Kenya's cultural tapestry.

At the end of the negotiations, mursik is served and drunk together by those present as a symbol of agreement and unity, it is considered crucial to the process.

Among the common tree species used by farmers for milk treatment in production of mursik are Senna didymobotrya, Lippia kituiensis, Prunus africana and Olea europaea ssp.

[6] A gourd is smeared inside with special charcoal called "osek"; from this, gray lines can be seen when pouring the thick, sour milk.

In preparing the gourd, the Kalenjin women, for instance, make a brush (sosiot) from a branch of cycad tree used to clean the inside.

Charcoal "osek", formed from the smouldering embers of branches from the Ite or Itet tree (peanut butter cassia, scientifically known as Senna didymobotrya), is used as a milk preservative.

The smoke from the embers also has a preservative effect which prevents undesired bacterial multiplication that causes spoilage, while allowing natural souring.

The charcoal smoke imparts a special flavour to the milk, and a bluish colour which is of high aesthetic value to the consumer.

After the gourd is full, it is corked for a while, to achieve a varied consistency of proper sour milk, and results in a clear, sharp (almost bitter in some cases) liquid in which white globules of butter float, shaken well.

Consumption of mursik has been linked to a high incidence of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, due to the presence of the carcinogen acetaldehyde in the drink.