Exotic Wine That Caused 1800s Rebellion Enters Present-Day Wine Market

QUEZON CITY, Philippines - Dec. 26, 2014 - PRLog -- An exotic wine that caused a rebellion in 1807 Philippines recently entered the wine market. Basi, the local term for sugarcane wine in the hilly region of Ilocos Norte, has been produced in the Asian country for centuries.

The Basi Revolt of 1807 was a bloody battle caused by a resolution in Spanish-occupied Philippines that expropriated Basi production and sales in the north.

Basi del Diablo, one of the wine brands from the area, is poised to enter the global wine market with hopes to revive the exotic wine industry in its locality.

Basi del Diablo “has an interesting story,” says founder and CEO Sigrid Salucop. Ninety-nine years after the Basi Revolt, Salucop’s great grandfather made his first batch of sugarcane wine. He later passed on the recipe to his seven sons. His youngest, Benito, carried on the tradition and sold the wine in his shop at 10 centavos a cup.

“He stored the fermented sugarcane in clay jars just outside of his home located in the downtown area of Batac, Ilocos Norte,” says Salucop. She added that the sugarcane wine kept going missing.

“My grandfather thought of something to keep thieves at bay. He told one of his patrons that he saw a demon in his yard and that it lurked where he kept his wine. From then on, no thieves came near his home. This is where the brand got its name.”