Tuba is a naturally fermented sap tapped from palm trees that served as both a recreational drink and a sacred element in animist ceremonies. Babaylan shamans used the beverage during rituals that connected the living with ancestral spirits.
Early accounts from 1521 describe Antonio Pigafetta of the Magellan expedition encountering this drink under the name uraca. He mistakenly believed it was distilled liquor when it was actually just fermented sap.
Colonial bans on vino de coco production led to the destruction of coconut plantations by mid-1700s. Captain Sebastian de Piñeda wrote to King Philip III of Spain in 1619 complaining about Filipino Indio settlers causing profit losses to Iberian exporters.
Indigenous Mexican peoples adopted Filipino still designs to create mezcal and sotol after prohibition ended local production. Tuba remains popular in Colima Jalisco Michoacán Nayarit and Guerrero states today as a traditional beverage.
American authorities banned aguajente after acquiring Guam in 1899 imposing prison sentences and fines on makers. Tax levies on producing palms in 1939 further crippled the industry before World War II.