Ungrape

I have already featured coconut wine and sugarcane liquor, and the deadly, distilled lambanog made from the sap of coconut flowers. Now let me present a more genteel locally-produced fruit wine. Bignay (Antidesma bunius) is a fruit tree native to Southeast Asia which produces clusters of little round berries. They grow wild in the Philippines and several companies make a light, sweet, slightly acidic wine from the ripe, red berries. Patubas (which is Hiligaynon for "harvest") also makes other fruit wines from duhat, guyabano and pineapple.

Refreshing

Fresh coconut water, anyone? He will first cut off the top, just enough to create a little hole from where to pour out the water—in a plastic bag, rather than a cup, and served with a straw. Then he'll cut the coconut in half and scoop out the soft meat and add it to your bag. Even unchilled, coconut water is very refreshing (although it's even better chilled, of course). When you've sipped all the water, the plastic bag is perfect for holding the meat while you eat it.

90 proof

Philippine alcoholic beverages have traditionally been made in backyard operations and you couldn't get any unless you went to the regions which produced each kind. A few companies now produce them commercially, both for local consumption and for export. This bottle of lambanog in a woven wicker bottle holder is available at Kultura, located in all SM malls, and makes for a great gift and souvenir.



Lambanog is produced mostly in the province of Quezon from the sap of coconut flowers which is cooked, fermented and distilled. Do not ever make the mistake of serving or storing lambanog in plastic containers—its alcoholic content is enough to melt plastic.

Morning zombie

7:15am. Waiting for a colleague at the Starbucks across the Ateneo de Manila University to go to a conference in Makati City. Sitting in the sun because anything lower than 24°C makes me shiver. Staring at the school rush hour traffic (grade schools and high schools usually begin classes at 7:30am). This is probably the closest I will ever get to posting a sunrise photo on this blog.

SEE IT SUNDAY: CUP

Cold and hot

Frozen cocktails, anyone? Rum and fruit juice or Kahlua? Holiday cheers to everyone! :)

Rising from the ashes

This isn't about Baang Coffee but about the mugs that they use in their coffee shops. This distinctive pottery style—the rough, speckled, natural body with the smooth, color-glazed lip—is the work of master potter Lanelle Abueva Fernando who has her studio and a garden café in Antipolo City in the province of Rizal. The speckles are caused by her use of volcanic ash from Mount Pinatubo. Back in 1991, Mount Pinatubo, located 90 kilometers north of Metro Manila, blew up in one of the worst volcanic eruptions of the 20th century. Lanelle's production of these pieces began as her way of helping the Aetas displaced by the catastrophe. She brought some of them to her workshop and taught them pottery, using the same material that destroyed their homeland in the first place. Now, it is Lanelle's most popular signature design. Each piece is handcrafted so there are never any two that are exactly alike.

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It's that time of the month when I remind all CDP bloggers to please vote for the December theme! The theme for November 1 is Doorways. I'm actually dreading this because most places here have privacy walls and I can't even see the doors, much less take pictures of them. Ach!