Spirits

Chinola

Fresh passion fruit liqueur grown and made in the Dominican Republic.

Founded by: Robert Pallone (co-founder)

Their story

Chinola takes its name from the Dominican word for passion fruit. The fruit is grown on the Samaná peninsula on the country's northern coast, where the brand works closely with local farmers.

The liqueur reached the spirits world in 2015. Co-founder Robert Pallone has described community and authenticity as the center of the business, and the company advises nearby growers on farming practices and then buys back their crop.

The range has since grown beyond passion fruit to include mango and guava liqueurs.

How it's made

Each bottle holds the juice of roughly six large passion fruits, blended with distilled spirit and no artificial additives. The team developed its own passion fruit hybrid from varieties brought in from California and Honduras, uses local Dominican sugar cane and rum, and keeps honeybees on the farm to help pollinate the vines.