FOOD NEWS
What Is Mamajuana, And How Do You Sip The Dominican Drink?
BY AUTUMN SWIERS
Mamajuana, also known as mama juana or damajuana, is a type of spiced rum from the Dominican Republic made of rum, wine, fruit juice, and honey.
The liqueur is steeped with botanicals ranging from tree bark, twigs, roots, and wood chips to basil, ginger, cinnamon bark, maguey leaves, sarsaparilla, star anise, and cloves.
This results in a spirit with a warming, sweet, fruity, and spiced flavor profile and a hue that ranges from amber to red. It offers 30% alcohol by volume.
The drink is also medicinal and believed to ease joint pain, treat impotence and inflammation, improve brain function, cleanse the body, aid digestion, and even prevent cancer.
The indigenous Taíno enjoyed the drink for centuries and would brew the liqueur as a healing cure-all elixir, mixing it with herbal tea before drinking it.
Today, locals drink mamajuana straight-up at room temperature or chilled with two ice cubes, and never on an empty stomach. It can even be enjoyed warm, like mulled wine.