If you ever wondered what is the secret behind St. Martin’s "national drink" then the workshop "How to make your own guavaberry" will pique your interest and answer some of your many questions.
The guavaberry workshop comes off on Saturday, June 2, 2012, at the University of St. Martin, Room 104, from 9 am to 10:30 am, said St. Martin Book Fair coordinator Shujah Reiph.
The Nature Valley Colombier Association, which hails from the village of Colombier, will conduct the guavaberry workshop. Colombier is generally considered to be a central part of the most fertile region in St. Martin.
The cultural association will discuss and explain when is the peak time to pick the guavaberry fruits, where to find the best guavaberries on the island and, if you can imagine, when is the best time to make the guavaberry "punch" or liqueur.
Should you bury your bottle of the freshly-made brew in the ground or is that just a legend, or a shrouded practice of eclectic home brewers?
All the same, the guavaberry workshop should be a treat for everyday folk and connoisseurs of liquors popular and exotic. The young and old with an interest in agriculture should also not miss this workshop, said Reiph.
Whether you never tried guavaberry or you grew up drinking it, prepare your taste buds to be tantalized when the facilitators show you how to make your own liqueur at home!
Guavaberry has been a fixed feature of the island’s culture and history dating back to centuries, especially during the Christmas and New Year’s Eve parties.
The Guavaberry-making workshop is one of over 20 free activities of the 10th annual St. Martin Book Fair that will take place from Monday, May 28 to Saturday, June 2, 2012, said Reiph. The actual book fair begins on Thursday, May 31 at Belair Community Center, at 8 pm – following the pre-Book Fair activities on Monday and Tuesday.
All book fair activities of "the book fair for the entire family" are free for the general public to attend, said Reiph.
Conscious Lyrics Foundation and House of Nehesi Publishers, both NGOs, organize the St. Martin Book Fair, in collaboration with St. Maarten Tourist Bureau and the University of St. Martin.
Nature Valley Colombier Association, known for elegant ladies in traditional wear, and dapperly dressed dons as in this file photo taken during a past Boardwalk Mas, will return to the city to teach "the culture ways" at the 10th anniversary of the St. Martin Book Fair 2012.