Search
Brazil
Argentina
Bolivia
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
Guyana
French Guiana
Falkland Islands (Malvinas)
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname
Uruguay
Venezuela
Germany
Austria
Belgium
Croatia
Denmark
Spain
Finland
France
Greece
the Netherlands
Hungary
Ireland
Iceland
Italy
Luxembourg
Norway
Poland
Portugal
the United Kingdom
the Czech Republic
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
Canada
the United States
Mexicothe Dominican RepublicTurkey
South Africa
Australia
Fiji
New Zealand
Papua New GuineaFlavors · San Pedro de Macorís
Homemade liqueur made from the guavaberry fruit, cooked with spices and mixed with rum, drunk at Christmas. It was brought to San Pedro de Macorís by the cocolos, Afro-Caribbean immigrants who came to work in the sugar mills.
Traditional drink from San Pedro de Macorís
Also known as: Licor de guavaberry, licor de arrayán
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
Click a photo to enlarge it.
Guavaberry — San Pedro de Macorís, the Dominican Republic
Guavaberry is the English name for arrayán (Myrciaria floribunda), a tree of the dry forests of the Caribbean whose small, round fruit—dark red or orange—has a sweet-and-tart flavor. In the English-speaking Caribbean islands, the fruit gave rise to a Christmas liqueur, and that custom reached the Dominican Republic with the cocolos.
Cocolos is the name given in the Dominican Republic to Afro‑Caribbean immigrants from islands such as Antigua, St. Kitts and Nevis, Montserrat, Dominica, St. Lucia and Tortola. From the 1880s onward they arrived in the province of San Pedro de Macorís to work in the sugar mills, cutting cane and in technical roles, because they spoke English. They brought their language, religion, the Guloyas dance and recipes such as guavaberry.
The fruit ripens at the end of the year, between October and December, in time for Christmas. For the liqueur, it is cooked with brown sugar, cinnamon, clove, allspice, ginger and sometimes raisins and vanilla, until it forms a kind of jam, which is then mixed with rum and left to rest before straining. Each family has its own recipe, and bottles of guavaberry are a traditional gift at the celebrations.
The liqueur became a symbol of Christmas for the cocolos of San Pedro de Macorís, where it also began to be produced on an industrial scale. In 1987, singer Juan Luis Guerra named an album Guavaberry in tribute to this cultural mix of Macorís. It is an alcoholic drink, served in small shots, chilled.
San Pedro de Macorís
Christmas liqueur brought by the cocolos, immigrants who came to work in the sugar mills of San Pedro de Macorís.
Fruit of the arrayán (guavaberry), rum, brown sugar, cinnamon, clove, allspice, ginger and, in some recipes, raisins, dried plums and vanilla.
Chilled, in small shots, at year-end parties; homemade bottles are offered as gifts.
Christmas and year-end celebrations, especially among cocolo families in San Pedro de Macorís. Alcoholic beverage, for adults and to be consumed in moderation.
Your questions
Afro‑Caribbean immigrants from English‑speaking islands such as Antigua, St. Kitts and Nevis and Tortola, who arrived in San Pedro de Macorís from the 1880s to work in the sugar mills.
The fruit of the arrayán, cooked with sugar and spices and mixed with rum.
At Christmas time, when the arrayán fruit ripens.
Flavors of the Dominican Republic
Sweet cream made from cooked red beans that are mashed and strained, mixed with coconut milk and evaporated milk, sugar, sweet potato, raisins and spices, served with little cookies on top. It is the Lent and Holy Week dessert throughout the country.
Everyday lunch: white rice, stewed beans and stewed meat, with salad and often tostones. The name evokes the colors of the national flag, and rice with beans is a foundation of the country’s culinary identity.
Drink made from peels, roots, herbs and spices macerated in a bottle with rum, red wine and honey. It went from a country home remedy to a signature Dominican drink, and the name comes from damajuana, the large glass carboy.
Mashed boiled green plantain mixed with butter or oil, topped with red onion in vinegar. It is the Dominican breakfast par excellence, often served with the tres golpes: fried cheese, salami and fried egg.
Thick broth of assorted meats and tubers such as plantain, cassava, yam and yautía, served with white rice and avocado. In the festive version it includes seven meats. It is part of the national identity and has a history linked to colonial times.
Thin, crispy fried wheat-flour dough, savory, about the size of a plate. It’s the beach snack associated with Boca Chica, and the name comes from the English johnnycake, brought by immigrants from the English-speaking islands of the Caribbean.
Stewed, spicy goat kid meat scented with oregano, ají and garlic, typical of the Línea Noroeste and Monte Cristi. Local belief holds that the region’s goats graze on wild oregano, which seasons the meat even before cooking.
Fresh fish seasoned with lime and cooked in a coconut milk sauce with annatto, cilantro, onion and garlic. It is Samaná’s signature dish, where coconut defines the local cuisine.
