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‘Tuba’ sippers set
Guinness record
SOME 9,300 "Warays" (Eastern Visayas residents) broke a Guinness world record Sunday in Palo City for a wine-tasting session, topping the previous record held by Spain with 5,095 people imbibers.
The event, organized by the An Waray Party-list and the Leyte local government was held at the MacArthur Shrine where General Douglas McArthur landed upon his return to the Philippines during World War II.
The number of Waray wine tasters was more than the 7,000 initially projected.
The Leyte event was sanctioned by the Guinness Book of World Records and endorsed by the Philippine Coconut Authority, Philippine Tourism Authority and Department of Tourism.
The wine tasters partook of "tuba", Eastern Visayas’ famous local brew from coconut.
Tuba or bahalina, reddish in color, is the local wine staple in Eastern Visayas, mainly comprising the coconut-producing island provinces of Leyte, Samar and Biliran.
Felimon Imperial Jr., wine connoisseur from the International Wine and Food Society, led the thumbs-up sign after the record-breaking feat.
"This is a very impressive gathering. I have not seen this in my 27 years as a wine expert," Imperial said, adding that the Waray tuba has the potential of making it into the global wine market.
An Waray Rep. Bem Noel said the Guinness record puts the tuba wine in the world map and boosts its potential of being an export winner. "We have now conquered Spain with our "tuba," Noel said. – Dennis Gadil
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