British Ambassador to the Philippines Daniel Pruce received a bottle of Basi Maria from the Office of the Vice Governor during his visit to Ilocos Norte last January 7. The token came from Vice Governor Cecilia Araneta Marcos who is a stalwart supporter of local products.

“The Vice Governor has always made sure to promote local food and beverages and she is very passionate about it,” Basi del Diablo’s winemaker and director Sigrid Salucop says. Mrs. Marcos recently attended Dulang Food Fair at the Pamulinawen Festival in Laoag where she said that “when you go to a different place, you always want to try the food because the food would showcase the culture, nature, and pride of the place”.

Basi Maria is a red wine made from cabernet sauvignon grapes and sugarcane. It is one of the brands produced by Salucop Group, Inc., a local company based in Batac, Ilocos Norte.

His excellency, Mr. Pruce, visited the capitol to discuss flood control measures sponsored by the United Kingdom. According to Governor Matthew Marcos Manotoc’s Facebook page, the United Kingdom will be sponsoring said measures in the town of Vintar. The talks also included the promotion of the United Kingdom’s transnational education program.