Carinus Est Precioso

Description

The CARINUS EST CHOCOLATE liqueur is the result of a wise combination of an ancient spirit that originated from the CISTERCIAN MONASTERY OF SÃO JOÃO DE TAROUCA, the CARINUS EST, luscious Portuguese cream, and delicate chocolate made from carefully selected Brazilian cocoa beans. This liquor comes from the Cistercian Monastery of São João de Tarouca. According to legends passed down orally from times beyond living memory, Carinus Est was one of the most valuable and rare elixirs the monks possessed, used to fight the “evils of the plague” and in solemn moments to speak more intimately with “God.” The monks sang, in a prayerful tone, “Ab imo corde laetemur” (from the bottom of the heart we rejoice) when they drank it. The Cistercian monks are said to have offered Licor Carinus Est, which was then drunk by D. Afonso Henriques, the first King of Portugal, so that he would not lack skill in the battle against the Moors, during which they seized the medieval town of Trancoso. In gratitude for such invaluable help, the king is said to have laid the first stone in the construction of the first Cistercian Monastery on Lusitanian land, now known as the Monastery of São João de Tarouca. As the elders say, “The king was brave in Trancoso because of the liquor he drank, and the priests and monks prayed for him.” It is also said that it was the preference of D. Pedro Afonso, Count of Barcelos and lord of Lalim, a troubadour like his father, D. Dinis, the sixth King of Portugal. When he drank Carinus Est, his inspirational muses were more favorable to him in his songs. **French invasions** At the beginning of the summer of 1808, Napoleon’s forces, commanded by one of his most ruthless generals, Loison (the “maneta”), were present in the counties near the monastery, causing deaths and looting everything that glittered. Fearing that the monastery might also be looted by the “maneta,” and that the Carinus Est liquor might end up in his hands, the monks supposedly removed the liquor from the monastery through a tunnel that allegedly linked the monastery to Lalim, hiding it in that village at a secret location. **Today** After the abolition of the religious orders in 1834, Carinus Est fell into the hands of the people, continuing, however, to be a very precious and expensive drink. From then on, Carinus Est also became a digestif consumed by the wealthier people of these lands on Sundays or holidays, when they enhanced their meals with rich, salty, and smoked meats. Today, Carinus Est does not “cure the plague,” but surely brings us closer to God when we partake of it in delightful rituals. Producer Douro's Flavours (illustrative image only)