Destileria Limtuaco Museum

Intramuros has always been a mysterious and fascinating place for me since I went there for a school field trip during my youth. The center of Spanish colonial existence within walls had a lot of history and sadly, wartime horrors. I still mourn for the churches and sites destroyed by war. This February, another location is added to the list of interesting must see destinations in the Walled City. Last week I chanced upon an FB post about Destileria Limtuaco Museum, 40 years in the making before they opened its doors to the public. Originally intended as a private museum of family artifacts, the company known for being the oldest distillery in the country finally gave the go signal to allow tourists and locals a peek into the rich Filipino wine culture spanning 5 generations.

Located just beside Lyceum University, the Destileria Limtuaco Museum is a restored bahay na bato 2 level structure. Entrance is P100 for adults and P50 for students and seniors. Harvey the tour guide provided a narrative of the company’s first popular drink called “sioktong” and as they say the rest is history. An imposing winemaker made of wood is seen at the entrance. Harvey then mentions the various distillation process in making rum from sugarcanes and whiskey from corns. We also had a chance to smell the liquors. For adults, there’s a product tasting for an additional of P100 in the bar located inside the museum. Pretty cool if only I didn’t have a minor beside me.

White Castle Whiskey is the most popular product of the company and there’s a collage of past models in their famous white and red bikinis. Vintage bottles, caps and paper labeling machines are also on display.

The 2^nd level features various liquor products, private memorabilia of the Limtuaco family such as cameras, typewriters and telephones. This was my son’s favorite part of the tour.

The museum is small than I had anticipated but it got me intoxicated and packs quite a punch.

Destileria Limtuaco Museum is located at 481 San Juan de Letran, Intramuros, Manila, Metro Manila (beside Lyceum University) 

Landline: (02) 485 9621