Basi del Diablo

Basi del Diablo Basi del Diablo Wines is a family-owned and operated wine brand under Salucop Group, Inc. It was 1906, and 333 years of Spanish rule was already over.

In the year 1786, the Spanish conquistadors expropriated Basi production and sales in the northern part of the Philippines because it was a big competitor against their own wines. The expropriation effectively banned private manufacture of sugar cane wine in the Ilocos region. By 1807, more than two decades later, the angry northerners marched to the present-day town of Piddig, Ilocos Norte to eng

age their Spanish conquistadors in battle. With Spain taking almost everything – their freedom, their beliefs – the 21-year-long sugar cane wine issue became the tipping point. The Basi Revolt resulted to a bloody battle that spread to nearby towns. A lot of lives were lost on both sides until Spanish troops marched to the north to quell the rebellion.

99 years later, a young man named Javier decided to get some Basi from the local market an hour walk away from his parent’s home in Batac. Javier bought some sugar cane wine from one of the local vendors and tasted it before he went home. The Spanish mestizo was disappointed. His family home, surrounded by sugar cane fields, was sitting on a hilly region of the northern province. Seeing the sugar cane around him, Javier decided that he will make his own Basi. He took some bark, seeds, and java plum to put a little flavour into the semi-sweet concoction. This is where Basi del Diablo started and Javier is my great grandfather. Later on, Javier married a girl named Honorata and they had eight children – seven boys and one girl. Javier taught his sons to make the Basi based on his recipe. When Javier’s first six sons grew up, America opened its doors to Filipinos and the boys decided to go there for better job opportunities. The youngest son, Benito, was much too young to go to America with his brothers. He ran after them, his lungs almost giving up on him, but the eldest, Vicente, put him in a rice sack and tied the sack to a tree. Benito was left behind but with him lived the recipe of Javier. Years later, Benito opened a small store and sold Basi but that wasn’t enough. The 14-year-old craved for adventure and decided to walk from Ilocos Norte to Manila. He then found a job at Tanduay. He moved from one job to the other until finally, he decided to go back home. He later opened a sari-sari store -his merchandise included Javier’s Basi and sold it for 10 centavos a cup. For decades, Benito only sold his Basi to relatives and friends and those who would occasionally pass by his little shop. Storing the fermented sugar cane in clay jars just outside of his home located in the downtown area of Batac, he complained to his wife about thieves. The Basi kept going missing so Benito thought of something to keep the thieves at bay. He told one of his patrons that he saw a demon in his yard and that it lurked where he always kept his wine. From then on, no thieves came near his home. This is the part of the story where the brand got its name. ~Sigrid Salucop

In 2013, our wine brand made a small decision - that we plant a tree for every shipping case sold. At the time, it was a...
01/04/2026

In 2013, our wine brand made a small decision - that we plant a tree for every shipping case sold. At the time, it was a modest gesture toward sustainability, to counterbalance commerce. We didn’t release projections about scale but what we did was build a system to count how many trees we’ve planted and measure their long-term impact - no matter how small.

But time, and consistency, have a way of turning intent into data.

Over the next twelve years, as transactions accumulated across markets and seasons, this parallel record grew and today, the trees we planted already produced 449.2 metric tons of oxygen, are currently servicing pollination within an estimated 300 hectare radius, and have absorbed an approximate 44 metric tons of carbon dioxide.

Each case sold corresponded to a tree planted. Each tree, over time, contributed to carbon absorption, oxygen production, and localised environmental recovery.

Conservative estimates now suggest that this tiny gesture has contributed to a measurable environmental impact. And the effects are still compounding as these trees have a projected lifespan of 50 years.

The operations systems that tracked transactions - dates, locations, product categories, purchasing patterns - were never designed with sustainability at the forefront.

We, of course, knew that our grape juice purchases would rely on our climate tracking of wine regions so it can tell us which varietal to buy and from where. But our climate impact is something that I did not anticipate until a few days ago when we ran the numbers.

When viewed longitudinally, our records began to form a layered story of human behaviour, seasons, and hundreds of seedlings that came from two mother trees.

For many organisations, this kind of data is interesting, especially those working at the intersection of artificial intelligence, climate modeling, behavioural analytics, and sustainability intelligence. But to us, it’s the story of oxygen, wine production, gifts, love, and celebrations.

We have always ensured data privacy and anonymity in our records but time and numbers reveal so much - from a bottle of wine as a gift purchased on the same day each year for several years to several cases of wine for a wedding.

We remember custom labels and we remember your excitement when you explained that you couldn't drink for 9 months because you are finally pregnant. Our data also recorded your joy when you welcomed your first child and you finally getting wine again for the dinner party - not for yourself because you had to breastfeed, but for the godmothers and godfathers who would later buy from us too.

Despite my rather emotional response to these numbers, I must now address the business side of things.

We are now beginning to open select conversations with AI companies and research teams interested in accessing this dataset for modeling, training, and strategic applications.

Discreet and serious inquiries regarding licensing or acquisition may be directed privately. Inquiries driven by curiosity will be parked in the meantime. I apologise in advance but much like this multi-layered dataset, I have work, wine, and loved ones to attend to. Thank you and have a good day.

Thank you my dearest manang Melissa and manang Bam! - Sigrid
16/02/2026

Thank you my dearest manang Melissa and manang Bam! - Sigrid

05/02/2026
Get a wine you didn't choose but will absolutely love. Receive a surprise wine from Basi del Diablo or its trusted partn...
04/02/2026

Get a wine you didn't choose but will absolutely love. Receive a surprise wine from Basi del Diablo or its trusted partners every month, paired with a recipe or mini bites that you can enjoy the minute you open your wine box.

Join us in this culinary adventure for just P1,000/month.

Subscribe for a year, get 1 box FREE.

01/01/2026

Wishing you all a wonderful year ahead.

24/12/2025
Congratulations, Chef! And thank you for including our wines to your wine list.
30/10/2025

Congratulations, Chef! And thank you for including our wines to your wine list.

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Batac

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