April 13th, 2010

Pitorro, Bili, Arancello, only in Puerto Rico

O.k., it is part of the Puerto Rican culture and other names given to this moonshine rum are Pitrinche, Canita, Lagrimas de Mangle, and Curao.  It is produced by distilling sugar cane.  As there are hardly any government-owned sugar cane mills, its production has diminished.  But, there was a time that it was found quite easily.  Let’s not forget that the sale of Pitorro is illegal. 

Mrs. P, had some Pitorro in her Hacienda, for her own consumption.  One bottle is all you need.  At times the alcohol content is above the 80 or 90 proof.  Hers is made with cranberries.  I found it a little strong.  A little? Definitely, strong and I only smelled it.

The next homemade alcoholic beverage was Bili.  Bili comes from the islands of Vieques and Culebra.  These islands are part of Puerto Rico and are located between Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.  Gorgeous islands.  Remember the movie Lord of the Flies?  The original movie was filmed in Vieques.

Bili is a drink that ferments rum, preferably pitorro, and quenepas.  I have not had quenepas in years.  Loved them growing up.  The quenepas are ripe in the summer.  They have a green hard shell that cracked with you teeth will expose a tart, tangy and yellow pulp.  It does have a pit.  Mrs. P’s Bili looked almost ready and even though it is still made with pitorro, the smell was not quite as potent; don’t kid yourselves because it is.

The next drink could really be more like an after dinner drink; a digestif.  Mrs. P. will call her drink an Arancello.  Just like the limoncello her Arancello is made with the rind of the fruit, except in her case, she uses oranges and the word for orange in Italian is arancia. Rum and simple syrup are the next ingredients.  Beautiful color, the Arancello is kept in the refrigerator.  Light with a fantastic citrus smell.

Mrs. P had everyone for the day at Hacienda Pellerano on Sunday.  The menu consisted of different appetizers like cheeses, shrimp, and a main dish of pork loin, accompanied by the ever present red rice and beans made by Mr. P., followed by different desserts. The guests that tried the Arancello thought it was the perfect ending to the meal.

Once again, I will have to mention that there is nothing better than sharing a meal with family and friends in a relaxed setting.

My Puerto Rican posts are not finished yet, sooo…later,