Rumberry

What it is

The round or slightly flattened fruit measures about 0.8–1.6 cm (⅓–⅝ in) across. Ripe berries come in yellow-orange and dark-red forms, the darkest almost black. These colours belong to different trees.

Under a thin, grape-like skin, a large seed takes up much of the fruit. The flesh around it is a thin, translucent, juicy layer with a sharp, bittersweet flavour.

Where it comes from

Rumberry grows wild across the Caribbean, from Cuba and Hispaniola through Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands to Trinidad. Its range also reaches southern Mexico, Central America, northern South America and eastern Brazil. It travelled to the Philippines in the early 1900s.

How it's eaten where it grows

In Cuba, people eat rumberries fresh and make them into jam. On St. John in the US Virgin Islands, preserved fruit fills tarts. On Saint Martin, family liqueurs steep the fruit in rum and sugar with spices such as cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg for Christmas.

The local Sint Maarten Guavaberry liqueur uses oak-aged rum, cane sugar and island fruit. A Guavaberry Colada blends it with coconut cream, pineapple and ice.

How it's grown

Rumberry grows as a shrub or slender tree, reaching 10–15 m (33–50 ft). Its glossy evergreen leaves have tiny oil glands, and the bark flakes. In Puerto Rico, it lives in both dry and moist coastal forests. Across its natural range, people leave fruiting trees standing when clearing pasture. On Sint Maarten, the liqueur producer gathers the little berries by hand in the island’s central hills.

When and where you'll find it

On Saint Martin, the berries were traditionally gathered in the hills at the end of summer. Local shops sell it as guavaberry rum, jam and fruit-flavoured candy. The Guavaberry Emporium makes its drinks on Frontstreet in Philipsburg. Christmas is the season for sharing the liqueur, after the fruit has spent weeks or months infusing in rum.