Philippine Islands – Discover the beauty of its 7,107 islands

Each part of our country has its own native drink to be proud of. The Tagalogs have lambanog to show off. The Ilonggos have basi. And, Cebuanos and Boholanos have the tuba, also known as “coconut wine” or “jungle wine.”

Although there are hundreds of commercial beverages to choose from, the tuba has made it to the top, for the tuba plays an immense role in Cebuano culture and history. As we all know, Filipinos gather in times of celebrations and commemorations. Most of the time, drinking alcohol and other beverages are some of the highlights of such gatherings.

So special is the role of the tuba in Cebuano culture that a festival in Argao is celebrated to honor not just the patron saint of the place but also to honor the tuba.

Pitlagong Festival Finale

Tuba is a part of our rich culture. It is just a part of our progressive past that is still to be discovered. This tells us that even we Cebuanos can produce our own beverage that we can be proud of.

This indigenous liquor is said to be already existent even before Spanish colonization. This was the official wine of every tribe at that time. This was proven by the writings of Pigafetta, the official chronicler of Ferdinand Magellan during the time when they colonized the Philippines.

In Cebu, Pigafetta drank palm wine with Rajah Humabon, the chief of Mactan that time. This only shows that since then, this liquor has been a witness to our history.

Folk songs and poems have been written about the tuba. Some of them are as follows:

    * “Kondansoy” (a Cebuano folk song)
    * “Si Pilemon” (a Cebuano folk song)
    * Tigmo (a

Have you ever tasted liquors and wines? I know some of you already have. It will be a miracle if you haven’t.

Well, if you think you’ve already tasted all the good wines, then it’s now time for you to think again because here you’ll discover a new wine that will make your mouth water. It is a wine we are very sure most of you haven’t tasted yet. Together, let us discover Cebu’s famous liquor—tuba.

Tuba in Philippine History

In 1521, Ferdinand Magellan, the first colonizer of the Philippines, arrived with troop in one of the provinces in the Philippines and was then offered a bamboo tube containing a drink.

The drink was said to be the sap taken from coconut flowers before they bloom. The sap is mixed with the bark of Rhizophora ocally known as tungog. After some time, it ferments and becomes a mild alcoholic drink having