Caribbean Secret Drinks: Mauby & Bois Bande

Mauby is an acquired taste unfamiliar to many travelers visiting the Caribbean islands. It is a refreshing drink on a hot day in the Caribbean called “Mauby” in the English Caribbean, “Mavi” in the Spanish Caribbean, and “Mabi” in the French Caribbean. The spelling may vary but the pronunciations are quite similar. 

Mauby is made from the bark of the Mauby tree – columbrina elliptica, native to the Caribbean and South Florida. The bark is boiled with spices such as cinnamon, aniseed, orange peel, nutmeg, and cloves. The boiled mixture is diluted with water and sweetened to taste. Traditionally, mauby is a fermented beverage but today, it is a commercial non-fermented soft drink.

Mauby has a unique flavor, with an initial sweet taste followed by a bitter after taste, that some people dislike but a favorite among many islanders and something worth trying by a Caribbean traveler. Today, local vendors in the islands walk around the towns and communities selling this delicious beverage in iced coolers and buckets on a hot day. Mauby is also sold commercially as a concentrated syrup that is diluted with water or sparkling water.

For hundreds of years, traditional Caribbean folk medicine has boasted about Mauby bark benefits. Limited scientific studies have proved the presence of beneficial compounds in the bark. Mauby tea benefits include joint health, arthritis, lowering blood pressure, and improving digestion. Mauby drank as a tea, is an excellent way to fight chronic inflammation that creates joint pain and arthritis.

Mauby has properties that make it useful for treating imbalances, such as digestive issues. Mauby benefits have the potential to help stabilize blood sugar levels, increase immunity and reduce pain. It acts as a diuretic and helps detoxify your body.

The drink has a cooling and relaxing effect on the body and is a great thirst quencher which is why islanders love it so much to escape from the heat of the day. 

Bois Bande is the bark of the Richeria grandis with a long reputation as an aphrodisiac among the eastern Caribbean islands. The name Bois Bande translated from French means “Tense Wood” and with every pun intended that is what the islanders use this for. The essence of this bark is drawn by alcohol usually white rum or similar to the mauby it is boiled with spices and drank as a hot beverage.

Although this product is popular for its sexual potency, it is believed to have other great values such as blood purification, promotion of blood flow, and is also said to combat urinary tract infections.

This wood is present in many homemade spice rums and its use can be stated back to the Amerindians who first settled in the Caribbean after migrating from South America. Its potency is revered and many islanders swear by it for its “viagra effect” though there is little scientific research to prove this. The bark itself is flavorless but when drawn correctly it turns the water or white rum dark brown.

Today many distilleries in the Eastern Caribbean include Bois Bande in their spice rum blends. Rums such as Elixr of Bois Bande from Dominica and Kweyol Spiced Rum from St. Lucia might be a local treat for a traveler.

While Mauby and Bois Bande are local Caribbean “bush medicines”, they are deeply integrated into the rare culture of Caribbean people. Travelers and the outside world have not seen much of these best-kept secrets but Jirie Caribbean is here to unveil the Caribbean and its secrets to you.

Let’s make some mauby!