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Lambanog

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Lambanóg
Bubblegum-flavored lambanog
TypePalm liquor
Country of origin Philippines
Region of originLuzon, Visayas
Alcohol by volume 40–45%[1][2]
IngredientsPalm sap
VariantsCoconut variant, Nipa variant, Kaong variant, etc.

Lambanóg is a traditional Filipino distilled palm liquor. It is an alcoholic liquor made from the distillation of naturally fermented sap (tubâ) from palm trees such as sugar palm, coconut, or nipa. Lambanog is well-known for having a strong alcohol concentration and can be used as a base liquor for various flavored spirits and cocktail creations.[3] The most popular variety is the coconut lambanog which is commonly described as "coconut vodka" due to its clear to milky white color and high alcohol content. It originates from Luzon and the Visayas Islands (where it is known as dalisay de coco). During the Spanish colonial period, it was also known as vino de coco in Spanish. It is particularly potent, having a typical alcohol content of 80 to 90 proof (40 to 45% abv) after a single distillation; this may go as high as 166 proof (83% abv) after the second distillation.[1]

A similar distilled drink made from nipa palm sap is known as laksoy.

History

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A kawa still for the production of lambanóg (c. 1912)
Generalized diagrams of Filipino-type stills

Tubâ, a kind of palm wine, existed in the Philippines before colonisation. They were widely consumed for recreation and played an important role in various religious rituals. Heavy consumption of alcohol in the Philippine islands was described in several Spanish accounts. Social drinking (tagayan or inuman in Tagalog and Visayan languages) was and continues to be an important aspect of Filipino social interactions.[4][5][6]

Quezon's Best, Tiaong

Tubâ could be further distilled in distinctive indigenous stills, resulting to the lambanóg, a palm liquor derived from tubâ. There were hundreds of local distilleries for lambanóg production, largely improvised. They varied from portable stills with around 20 L (0.020 m3) capacity, to large stills that can process 750 L (0.75 m3). They usually consisted of two large pans (kawa or karaha), a hollowed out log, and a bamboo tube. One pan was filled with the tubâ and set on the fire. The hollowed out log was placed in between, acting as the walls of the still. The second pan was then placed on top of the wooden cylinder and constantly filled with cold water to induce condensation. A bamboo tube was attached to the wooden cylinder to collect the distillate to containers. Larger stills were barrel-like and made from planks reinforced with rattan hoops. The joints of the still were sealed with clay or rags. The entire upper part of the apparatus was usually connected to a lever that allowed them to be swung aside to refill or clean the lower pan.[4][7]

A distillery in Pangasinan (c. 1912)

During the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines, lambanog was inaccurately called vino de coco ("coconut wine"). From around 1569, it was introduced via the Manila galleons to Nueva Galicia (present-day Colima, Jalisco, and Nayarit), Mexico by Filipino immigrants who established coconut planations. It quickly became highly popular in the region. It competed with the sales of imported spirits from Spain, leading Spanish colonial authorities and the Royal Audience in Spain to ban the production of vino de coco and issue an order for the destruction of coconut plantations. By the mid-1700s, vino de coco production in Mexico had ceased (though non-alcoholic variants of tubâ persisted). The prohibition of vino de coco and the introduced distillation technologies from the Philippines led to the development of mezcal and tequila by the indigenous peoples of Mexico.[8][9][10][11]

"There are in Nueva España so many of those Indians who come from the Filipinas Islands who have engaged in making palm wine along the other seacoast, that of the South Sea, and which they make with stills, as in Filipinas, that it ill in time become a part reason for the natives of Nueva España, who now use the wine that comes from Castilla, to drink none except what the Filipinos make. For since the natives of Nueva España are a race inclined to drink and intoxication, and the wine made by the Filipinos is distilled and as strong as brandy, they crave it rather than the wine from España. . . . So great is the traffic in this [palm wine] at present on the coast at Navidad, among the Apusabalcos, and throughout Colima, that they load beasts of burden with this wine in the same way as in España. By postponing the speedy remedy that this demands, the same thing might also happen to the vineyards of Piru. It can be averted, provided all the Indian natives of the said Filipinas Islands are shipped and returned to them, that the palm groves and vessels with which that wine is made be burnt, the palm-trees felled, and severe penalties imposed on whomever remains or returns to make that wine."

— Sebastian de Piñeda, letter to King Philip III of Spain (1619), [8][12]

During the American colonial period, the Food and Drugs Board of the Philippine Islands set up regulated distilleries for lambanóg with modern equipment. Home production of lambanóg was made illegal, as unregulated production can result in the retention of toxic levels of methanol due to improper procedures. They also standardized the trade name of lambanóg to "Philippine palm brandy" (also "Philippine coco palm brandy"). This was due to the fact that they were distilled (and thus not wines); as well as concerns about the local prejudice against "native drinks" (which are generally known as vino or bino) which could affect their marketability.[4]

TasteAtlas in the "Top 79 Spirits in the World" March 15, 2024 list ranked Lambanog as No. 2 with 4.4 star rating from a possible 5. It described Lambanog "the clear, colorless, and strong Lambanog originating from the fermented sap of coconut palm, with a usual alcohol content around 40% ABV."[13]

Description

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Lambanóg has a very high alcohol content of 40%-45% abv (80 to 90 proof), in comparison to bahalina (10%-13% abv) and tubâ (2% - 4% abv).[2] Lambanóg is usually served pure, though it can also be traditionally flavored with raisins. Modern lambanóg has recently been marketed in several flavours such as mango, blueberry, pineapple, bubblegum and cinnamon in an effort to appeal to all age groups.[14]

Production

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Worker in the Philippines collecting sweet coconut sap from cut flower stalks for the production of lambanog

Lambanóg production was traditionally centered in the Southern Tagalog region. The current main producing areas are the provinces of Quezon, Laguna, and Batangas, where coconuts are a dominant agricultural crop. Not all lambanóg variants are from coconut. Lambanóg is also used as a generic term mostly in Southern Luzon, specifically in Quezon, for all alcoholic drinks from palm trees—whether they are from kaong, coconut, or nipa. In Mauban, lambanóg sa sasa is called nipanog. Most lambanóg producers are small-scale cottage industries with only around 4 to 25 employees. Quezon is the leading producer of lambanóg, hosting the three largest lambanóg distillers of the country: Mallari Distillery, Buncayo Distillery, and Capistrano Distillery.[15] Lambanóg (as dalisay or dalisay de coco) were also produced in the Visayas Islands in the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines.[16][17][18]

Health concern

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Unregistered lambanóg production is illegal in the Philippines under regulations by the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Agriculture. Consumers are warned to only purchase lambanóg that is properly sealed and made by companies registered with the FDA. Several deaths still occur each year from methanol poisoning after drinking lambanóg moonshine or adulterated lambanóg from retailers.[19][20]

In December 2019, at least 11 people died and in excess of 300 treated after drinking home-brewed lambanog coconut wine in Laguna and Quezon, two provinces south of Manila.[21]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Goco, Nico. "5 Reasons Why We Should Care About Lambanog". Pepper.ph. Archived from the original on December 23, 2019. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
  2. ^ a b Sanchez, Priscilla C. (2008). Philippine Fermented Foods: Principles and Technology. UP Press. pp. 151–153. ISBN 9789715425544. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  3. ^ "The Philippine Vodka "Lambanog": Facts & Misconceptions". Archived from the original on December 13, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Gibbs, H.D.; Holmes, W.C. (1912). "The Alcohol Industry of the Philippine Islands Part II: Distilled Liquors; their Consumption and Manufacture". The Philippine Journal of Science: Section A. 7: 19–46.
  5. ^ Lasco, Gideon. "Tagay: Why there's no Tagalog word for "cheers" and other notes on Filipino drinking culture". Health, Culture, and Society in the Philippines. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
  6. ^ Garcia, Lawrence (December 9, 2017). "Tagay: A Look at Philippine Drinking Culture". Humaling. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
  7. ^ Page 17 in: Fernandez, Doreen G. (2019). "Food and Flavors". Tikim: Essays on Philippine Food and Culture. pp. 6–59. doi:10.1163/9789004414792_003. ISBN 978-90-04-41479-2. S2CID 213356790.
  8. ^ a b Zizumbo-Villarreal, Daniel; Colunga-GarcíaMarín, Patricia (June 2008). "Early coconut distillation and the origins of mezcal and tequila spirits in west-central Mexico". Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution. 55 (4): 493–510. doi:10.1007/s10722-007-9255-0. S2CID 33594723.
  9. ^ Machuca, Paulina (2018). El vino de cocos en la Nueva España: historia de una transculturación en el siglo XVII. Zamora, Michoacán: El Colegio de Michoacán. ISBN 978-607-544-034-7.
  10. ^ Machuca, Paulina (August 8, 2021). "La herencia asiática en México: nuestra cuarta raíz". El Universal: 2–3. Archived from the original on April 20, 2024. Retrieved April 21, 2024.
  11. ^ Hatchett, Caroline (April 27, 2023). "The Philippine Influence in Mexican Mezcal Distilling". Liquor.com. Archived from the original on February 4, 2024. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  12. ^ Bruman, Henry J. (July 1944). "The Asiatic Origin of the Huichol Still". Geographical Review. 34 (3): 418–427. doi:10.2307/209973. JSTOR 209973.
  13. ^ Purnell, Kristofer (March 23, 2024). "Shot puno! Lambanog second on 'top global spirits' list". The Philippine Star. Archived from the original on March 29, 2024. Retrieved March 24, 2024.
  14. ^ Lambanog: a Philippine drink Archived February 11, 2017, at the Wayback Machine, TED Case Studies #782, 2005
  15. ^ Ascan, Tricia C.; Zapata, Normito R. Jr.; Agapay-De Jesús, Hannah Aesa S. (2010). "Status and strategic directions of the lambanog wine processing industry in Liliw, Laguna, Philippines" (PDF). Journal of the International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural Sciences. 16 (2): 39–52. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 12, 2013. Retrieved April 21, 2019.
  16. ^ Delgado, Juan José (1892). Biblioteca Histórica Filipina: Historia general sacro-profana, política y natural de las islas del poniente, llamadas Filipinas. p. 664. Archived from the original on August 4, 2023. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
  17. ^ Alegre, Edilberto N. (1992). Inumang Pinoy. Anvil. p. 23. ISBN 9789712702310.
  18. ^ Alcina, Francisco Ignacio; Martín-Merás, María Luisa (1975). Historia de las islas e indios visayas del Padre Alcina, 1668. Editorial CSIC - CSIC Press. ISBN 9788450010541.[page needed]
  19. ^ Galvez, Daphne (December 11, 2018). "FDA orders seizure of unregistered 'lambanog' products". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
  20. ^ Guzman, Jimmyley E. (December 12, 2018). "Public warned to buy only FDA-registered Lambanog". Philippine Information Agency. Archived from the original on May 6, 2019. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
  21. ^ "Eleven dead, 300 treated after drinking coconut wine in Philippines". Reuters. December 22, 2019. Archived from the original on December 24, 2019. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
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