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Change in TV Passion Fruit Syrup???

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OK- I am pretty embarrassed. It has been more than 6 mos since I started this thread and all of this time I was without Passion Fruit syrup. What a gap in my bar tending repertoire. But after analyzing the posts, here are my rankings from everyone's input:

  1. The best by far is making your own (I need to have the time and the will power to work hard)
  2. Aunt Lilikoi: cannot find anyone that didn't’t like it
  3. Monin is the next best, but some people don’t like
  4. Finest call: mint or menthol flavor??
  5. Teisseire, only one person who liked it 2nd best, but it is hard to find on line. Looks like it is from a French company…. Phuket foods. Too weird for me to order from
  6. Torani’s: drink killer. Not a lot of fans
  7. Fee Brothers: some fans
  8. Kukoi brand: can’t find on the internet

After being frozen in fear of ruining more drinks like I did w/the much un-improved TV formula, I ordered the Aunt Lilikoi: very fruity, but also very sweet. I now have started going thru all of the recipes again and pleased to report every drink went down the hatch, not the drain like w/the TV brand. Thumbs up for me!

On 2008-02-24 14:42, mangrovemike wrote:
After being frozen in fear of ruining more drinks like I did w/the much un-improved TV formula, I ordered the Aunt Lilikoi: very fruity, but also very sweet.

It's syrup. It's sweet.

And now I present to you from the anals of Gnomon history (if I had meant annals I would have said so)...

Gnomon's Family Secret from 1345 Revealed

This is a little known fact and one of the Gnomon’s family secrets that actually dates back much earlier than 1345 (which is a quarter to two yesterday afternoon EST military reckoning—I do way too much Gub’ment contracting for my own good).

Lots of us use passion fruit syrup in many of our drinks and dishes, or would like to if we could get ahold of any. I make my own on those rare occasions that I can find fresh passion fruit in this area and if I am willing to spring for $3 per fruit. So I prefer to rely on high-quality store-bought.

Aunty Lilikoi (aka Lori & Tony Cardenas) Passion Fruit Products, an award-winning passion fruit company on Kaua’i, is a mom-n-pop operation in Wimea that makes all sorts of great passion fruit stuff, not just syrup. As for the syrup, a 10½ oz bottle costs $5. The shipping and handling to the mainland, however, is $13. So if you order just one bottle, it comes to $22.

While that’s actually cheaper for me than homemade considering the price of the fresh fruits here; it’s not a very attractive proposition. The item is shipped via USPS Priority Mail in a flat rate box. You can get six 10½ oz bottles (label says 10 oz, but it's 10½) into one Priority Mail flat rate box. That's 6 x $5, or $30 for the syrup and with $13 S&H it comes to $43. That comes to a little more than $7 per 10½ oz bottle; which sure beats $22 per bottle for buying just one.

As it so happens—and here’s the secret—not in the catalog, but strictly by request, she will make up quarts of her syrup in Mason jars (labeled by hand in black marker on the lid). That’s the way I get mine (see photos). One quart is about the same as three 10½ oz bottles, but besides saving $3 there, you also get an indefinitely reusable quart Mason jar. For those who make lots of their own stuff, those jars come in handy.

Those go for $12 each and you can fit two in the $13 box ($8.95 postage, the rest handling). That’s $37, which comes to just over $6 per 10½ bottle equivalent.

Her shipping prices are posted on her website. She also ships internationally, but the shipping costs more, of course. Still it's probably worth it if you are aching for fantastic PF syrup and you order enough to fill a flat-rate Priority Mail box. Essentially, the flat rate box is $13 for US Zips, $25 for Mexico and Canada, and $40 everywhere else. The box holds 1 – 6 items or 2 quart jars.

It’s dangerous syrup. If you ever lick the bottle you’ll be tempted to shove a straw down into it and drink it dry. Resist the urge! It’ll keep you wired all night, albeit passionately.


Aunty Lilikoi Passion Fruit Syrup in quart Mason jars.


Re-used 10½ bottle filled from a quart jar.

Check it out.

She also has Passion Fruit and Passion Fruit Wasabe products (dressing, mustard, teriyaki). I might even try the Passion Fruit Habanero Jelly.

Ooops! Thanks UtopianDreem for letting me know I misspelled 'lilikoi' in the link. Fixed now.

[ Edited by: The Gnomon 2008-02-25 10:39 ]

Nice post Gnomon, but that Aunty Lilikoi stuff is pretty darn expensive. Is it worth it? The Finest Call Passion Fruit Puree, which the Bum recommends in Sippin' Safari is $4 per 1 liter bottle. Four bottles with shipping runs you $26.95 total. That's about 20 cents per oz compared to about 57 cents per oz for the Aunty Lilikoi.

Now I've not had the Aunty Lilikoi, so I can't comment on it, but I assume it's good based on your experience. But I've had the old TV's forumla, the Finest Call, and I've made my own using Goya's frozen passion fruit pulp. The Goya's was the most passion fruity and best overall tasting (and probably the cheapest). I'd probably place the Finest Call second and the old Vic's third. If you ever get hold of the Finest Call brand, please do a comparison to the Aunty Lilikoi and let us know. It had better be next to a religious experience at that price! :wink:

I, too, use Goyas PF pulp and most of their other pulps. It's not as good as fresh passion fruit, but close enough and not at all expensive.

I've invited Lori to join TC, so hopefully she'll find her way here and enlighten us all.

Anyone tried entner-stuart passion fruit syrup? They boast all natural ingredients, and basically its the only one I can find locally, but I've been pleased with it. $7.99 at The beverage gourmet

On 2008-02-25 10:08, GatorRob wrote:
Nice post Gnomon, but that Aunty Lilikoi stuff is pretty darn expensive. Is it worth it? The Finest Call Passion Fruit Puree, which the Bum recommends in Sippin' Safari is $4 per 1 liter bottle. Four bottles with shipping runs you $26.95 total. That's about 20 cents per oz compared to about 57 cents per oz for the Aunty Lilikoi.

Now I've not had the Aunty Lilikoi, so I can't comment on it, but I assume it's good based on your experience. But I've had the old TV's forumla, the Finest Call, and I've made my own using Goya's frozen passion fruit pulp. The Goya's was the most passion fruity and best overall tasting (and probably the cheapest). I'd probably place the Finest Call second and the old Vic's third. If you ever get hold of the Finest Call brand, please do a comparison to the Aunty Lilikoi and let us know. It had better be next to a religious experience at that price! :wink:

Yes, it's worth it. It's that good.

It is expensive, but have you figured out the cost of the rum investment??? I agree that is great. Thanks for the tip on the larger jar..... Later, I have to go lick the last drops from my jar of syrup....

G

On 2008-02-25 12:24, The Gnomon wrote:
I, too, use Goyas PF pulp and most of their other pulps. It's not as good as fresh passion fruit, but close enough and not at all expensive.

So how does the Goya's syrup from frozen pulp compare to the Aunty Lilikoi syrup? Your comment about the Goya's being "close enough" to syrup made from fresh passion fruits leads me to think that the Goya's and the Lilikoi are also very close.

I just made up a batch from the Goya & it's really tasty in a Demerara Dry Float (from Intoxica) - but this brings up another question: How long will the syrup last before it starts to go bad? I added a few oz's of white rum (Bacardi does have it's uses) as a preservative & keep it in the fridge. Sippn' Safari says it will keep for a few days. Now I enjoy a tropical cocktail now & angain - but I don't think I can polish off the bottle THAT fast!

Goy's PF pulp is close enough to the fresh fruits I get to avoid paying $3 per fruit except on occasion. I do find it easier to extract the juice from the fresh fruits than from Goya pulp. But you get a lot more product from one package of Goya than you end up with from let's say 8 fruits and for a lot less money.

Aunty Lilikoi's PF syrup looks and tastes better than my own, but Lori's artistry with PF products is understanadbly far more advanced than mine. Plus, she has better equipment. Plus, she has PF grown on the garden island and cultivated to perfection. List goes on, I'm sure.

The fruits I get fresh are grown in Florida (originally Brazil); purple on the outside (aka Purple Passion Fruit) and yellow on the inside. Goya's pulp is yellow as well, so it comes from Purple PF. Aunty Lilikoi's fruits are yellow on the outside (aka Yellow PF) and pinkish on the inside, so her syrup comes out orange colored. Orange colored PF syrup I call "red" so that there is no confusion in thinking that there is orange flavor in the PF syrup. I'm not sure what the flavor differences are between the two varieties, but if its not the same its very similar. I've just never had one of each together at the same time.

One of the chores in making the syrup is getting the juice out of the pulp. It's OK to have some pulp in there for character, but just as with Orgeat, the more thoroughly the pulp can be strained, the clearer the final product and the more suitable for drinks (transparent drinks mainly). If you use it only in opaque drinks then removing the pulp is less important (and a healthy source of fiber 8) )

Thanks to Scottes' nylon filter bags (the ones he located and introduced to us in an Orgeat thread), it makes this task easier. Cheesecloth tends to rip apart at the most inopportune times, The filter bags are really strong. As you might imagine, while it's sometimes fun doing this, it can get old fast. Spending $37 to buy a half gallon of Aunty Lilikoi's instead saves you a few hundred $$-worth of labor, time, and hassle.

One advantage to making your own is controlling the level of sweetness you like. I think Lori at AL, probably after years of experimenting, testing, and winning awards, got the ideal sweetness. The fruit itself is pretty tart.

If the AL syrup is too sweet for you, you can always tartify it a bit with some fresh or de-pulped PF juice. AL syrup is sweet enough to eliminate the need for RCS in drinks that call for both. If, for example, you want to make a Mai Tai with PF flavor, add AL PF syrup and don't use any RCS.

But if you're happy with making your stuff with pulp rather than juice, you can avoid lots of effort and/or expense.

Holy crap! I was just surfing the AL site to see if there was a good pic of a yellow PF cut in half showing its pinkish insides (couldn't find one), but I just noticed that she also sells unsweetened PF juice. Hmmmm! Same price as the syrup. That could come in handy.

I have no idea how long PF syrup lasts. I don't refrigerate mine, but it doesn't sit around forever. It always is still good by the time I finish off a bottle or jar.

My passion fruit syrup (from Goya) lasts weeks and weeks. I actually had the problem where the sugar started to separate as with honey. Just need to drink it faster, I guess but ordinarily, it lasts as long as I need it to.

On 2008-02-29 14:07, pappythesailor wrote:
My passion fruit syrup (from Goya) lasts weeks and weeks. I actually had the problem where the sugar started to separate as with honey. Just need to drink it faster, I guess but ordinarily, it lasts as long as I need it to.

Hey Pappy, the crystal formation is caused by evaporation (yeah I know, "obvious"). The next time this happens, simply redissolve the sugar by reheating the syrup (adding a couple of teaspoons of water to the syrup if necessary). If it's really crystallized, simmer the whole syrup bottle in a stock pot filled with water up to the syrup level for 15 minutes, then let cool. :)

S

Pappy, where do you get the Goya pulp around here? I haven't had any luck finding it....

Gnomon, great info as usual.


[ Edited by: Scottes 2008-02-29 15:02 ]

Thanks, Gnomon, for all that great info. I have no problem with a little "fiber" in my cocktail - My syrup will not go unused! I was concerned because I recently had a bottle of Stirrings Grenadine grow some kind of mold when I left it out of the fridge for a few weeks. The Rose's Grenadine NEVER gets moldy - even after a few years on the shelf!

On 2008-02-29 17:52, Kahuna Kent wrote:
Thanks, Gnomon, for all that great info. I have no problem with a little "fiber" in my cocktail - My syrup will not go unused! I was concerned because I recently had a bottle of Stirrings Grenadine grow some kind of mold when I left it out of the fridge for a few weeks. The Rose's Grenadine NEVER gets moldy - even after a few years on the shelf!

The disadvantage of using Rose's is that it sucks. Might as well be the syrup inside a bottle of Maraschino cherries (actually, the syrup inside a bottle of cherries tastes better IMO).

The advantage of using Rose's is that after you die, you will already have been embalmed :lol: .

At least Stirrings is notably pomegranate. Unless I make my own, I use Stirrings. I don't usually make grenadine syrup anymore. It has never had the strong presence of pomegranate that I like, so I just use pomegranate juice or pomegranate juice concentrate (more often). Between the RSC or PFS or other sweet elements in the concoction, the pomegranate juice has a better result, both in sweetness and flavor.

The way I found out about the quart jars of Aunty Lilikoi was that I asked her if she could ship it to me in a 55 gallon drum. She couldn't do that, but did offer me the undocumented quart jars.

When you get your AL PFS, you end up on a PF drink kick. I went through one quart in about a week. You have to force yourself to slow down.

The way I found out about the quart jars of Aunty Lilikoi was that I asked her if she could ship it to me in a 55 gallon drum. She couldn't do that, but did offer me the undocumented quart jars.

When you get your AL PFS, you end up on a PF drink kick. I went through one quart in about a week. You have to force yourself to slow down.

I just got my first shipment from Aunty Lilikoi recently. It does make a fine drink. I was wondering though, it is made from PF juice and pectin (and water too I beleive) as opposed to PF juice and sugar syrup... Do you think a little extra simple syrup would be needed to add the same "sweetness" or is the sugar content of the PF juice itself enough to get the proper result without any added sugars?

Heh - I should put a smiley ;> when I talk about Rose's syrup - I don't actually DRINK the stuff!

The other stuff that never goes bad is the Obrien's Hurricane mix that was recommended for "Fassionola" in the Don Beach recipes. Gnomon, do you know anything more "natural" that I could use for Fassionola?

On 2008-03-04 16:19, badpelican wrote:

The way I found out about the quart jars of Aunty Lilikoi was that I asked her if she could ship it to me in a 55 gallon drum. She couldn't do that, but did offer me the undocumented quart jars.

When you get your AL PFS, you end up on a PF drink kick. I went through one quart in about a week. You have to force yourself to slow down.

I just got my first shipment from Aunty Lilikoi recently. It does make a fine drink. I was wondering though, it is made from PF juice and pectin (and water too I beleive) as opposed to PF juice and sugar syrup... Do you think a little extra simple syrup would be needed to add the same "sweetness" or is the sugar content of the PF juice itself enough to get the proper result without any added sugars?

Did you ever drink unsweetened passion fruit juice? Basically, it's a tart as a lemon or lime; probably moreso. Suffice it to say, it will make you pucker up and make a shriveled up face.

Actually, water and sugar are the most abundant ingredients in Aunty Lilikoi Passion Fruit Syrup. Next comes the passion fruit juice. Pectin is last and is used as a stablizing agent in certain foods. In food labeling, ingredients have to be listed in order of prominence in the product. Whatever is included in the largest quanity compared to the other ingredients is listed first, and so on down the line.

Anyway, I would not advocate any additional sugar. In fact, as I mentioned before, if you use AL PFS in a drink that typically calls for Rock Candy Syrup as well, you can leave out the RCS.

On 2008-03-04 17:05, Kahuna Kent wrote:
Heh - I should put a smiley ;> when I talk about Rose's syrup - I don't actually DRINK the stuff!

The other stuff that never goes bad is the Obrien's Hurricane mix that was recommended for "Fassionola" in the Don Beach recipes. Gnomon, do you know anything more "natural" that I could use for Fassionola?

How natural is fruit juicy Hawaiian Punch syrup?

Quick answer. Fassionola was never my thing, so I don't know. Longer answer is that there has been a fair amount of discussion on TC about Fassionola and its suitable substitute (if I recall correctly) which is Hawaiian Punch syrup, also not easy to find apparently.

Do a search for fassionola and you'll find the discussions. You'll also probably find Fassionola afficcionados who can recommend more natural substitutes.

The Lilikoi is really good stuff. But, it is quite super-sweet. It works best when the another "sweet" ingredient is substituted with a "dry" version. The Finest Call is best in the traditional versions on cocktails IMHO.

[ Edited by: bewarethe151 2008-03-06 22:08 ]

Anybody have any luck finding the Goya frozen pulp over here on the Left Coast? I made a double batch this weekend using Ceres PF juice in the box. Very good, but I didn't realize until later that it also contains apple/pear juice. I must have made 3 blenders full of Spindrifts along with some Puka Punch. Always out of rum by Monday.

Thanks.

Goya Foods of California
15320 Salt Lake Avenue
City of Industry, CA 91745
Tel: 626-961-6161
Fax: 626-937-2464

Guess you'll have to call them and ask what chains buy their pulp.

Thanks. I think I know where to get it.

*On 2008-02-25 07:39, The Gnomon wrote:

Aunty Lilikoi (aka Lori & Tony Cardenas) Passion Fruit Products, an award-winning passion fruit company on Kaua’i, is a mom-n-pop operation in Wimea that makes all sorts of great passion fruit stuff, not just syrup. As for the syrup, a 10½ oz bottle costs $5. The shipping and handling to the mainland, however, is $13. So if you order just one bottle, it comes to $22.

While that’s actually cheaper for me than homemade considering the price of the fresh fruits here; it’s not a very attractive proposition. The item is shipped via USPS Priority Mail in a flat rate box. You can get six 10½ oz bottles (label says 10 oz, but it's 10½) into one Priority Mail flat rate box. That's 6 x $5, or $30 for the syrup and with $13 S&H it comes to $43. That comes to a little more than $7 per 10½ oz bottle; which sure beats $22 per bottle for buying just one.

As it so happens—[i]and here’s the secret*—not in the catalog, but strictly by request, she will make up quarts of her syrup in Mason jars (labeled by hand in black marker on the lid). That’s the way I get mine (see photos). One quart is about the same as three 10½ oz bottles, but besides saving $3 there, you also get an indefinitely reusable quart Mason jar. For those who make lots of their own stuff, those jars come in handy.[/i]

A bit of bad news: Aunty Lilikoi no longer ships the quart bottles. I called to make the special request and was told she couldn't do that anymore because it was too difficult to ensure they wouldn't break.

So until I make it out to Hawaii in person to talk her into selling me a barrel, I'll be ordering the 10-ounce bottles. Very high-quality stuff.

Hmmm! That's a revolting development.

Next time I order PFS I will send her a signed release absolving her of any responsibility if her standard packaging doesn't hold up. Her jars always made it the 5000 miles from Wimea, Kauai to Washington DC safe and sound in the past. Maybe she'll make exceptions for certain customers.

R

On 2007-07-10 01:00, Klas wrote:
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Monin yet. They make a great passion fruit syrup using real passion fruit. I can also recommend their orgeat.

yes, but NOT easy to find!

I just ordered two 750ml bottles from http://www.moninstore.com - I enjoy the Finest Call, but once you open it, you have to use it before it goes bad, which usually isn't a problem. I still have a bottle of Finest call, but am waiting until I know I'll use it all within 2-3 weeks

Sorry to tell you guys, but a year or two ago Monin stopped using real ingredients in their syrup, it's all artifical flavors now, and it doesn't taste nearly as good.
I just tried making passion fruit from frozen pulp+sugar cane syrup, tastes good.

Ran

MT

Ran, did you use the Goya frozen passion fruit pulp? I've been having a hard time finding that around my area, and finally called their distributors, who directed me to a place nearby in Oakland. I'm hoping to pick some up within the next day or so. Just curious if that's what you used, and how you like it compared to the old Trader Vic's stuff before it changed, as well as other passion fruit syrups.

Goya pulp isn't expensive at all. I forget what I paid for my last batch of passion fruit pulp. I still have three packs left. But fresh passsion fruits go for $2 per fruit around here, when you can find them. The pulp is the most practical way to go. It tastes pretty close to fresh when thawed and it is not coslty.

I'm not sure, but I think about 10 – 12 packs probably come in a single carton of Goya frozen pulp. I'm guessing that just about every major grocery store near everyone carries a line of Goya products, even if only a few. Any store that has an established account with Goya should be able to special order any Goya product, so you should probably go down to the corner store and ask the grocery manager to order you a carton.

I learned that little trick growing up in a household where two people were in supermarket management. Any time you want something that the store doesn't carry, just commit to buying a whole carton (or whatever minimum unit the store can order) and you can get just about anything delivered to your local market. That beats spending three times the money on gas and wasting lots of time if you can afford a carton of whatever it is and can deal with the quantity.

In this case, a carton of frozen pulp shouldn't be difficult to handle in size or cost. That's what I'd be doing if it wasn't as readily available in stores around here as it is.

Mai Tai,
I was able to find a local Cuban Market that should have it, but they were out of it, they should be getting some on Thursday.
I found another brand in a Mexican supermarket (forgot the name, sorry), and used the whole packet to make a bottle.
Yesterday I added some rum to it, as it's in the fridge and I'd like it to keep for a while.
If/when I find Goya, I'll probably doa taste test.
I remember the taste of old TV, but back when I was using a lot of PFS I used Monin mostly (when it had fruit), so the old TV taste is not branded on my taste buds. From what I could tell, the pulp/sugar syrup mix that I made certainly resembled that. My only gripe is that it wasn't very thick.

Yesterday I also called around until I found a way to get Funkin brand PF puree to a local liquor store...but I held off at the last moment, becasue they said that a case of five 1 liter packets would be ~$120!!!
I almost said yes, but then I was thinking - that is way too much money for what it is...the frozen pulp was ~$2.50 and that 1:1 sugar syrup filled an 750 ml bottle.

Ran

A

On 2009-06-30 10:28, kick_the_reverb wrote:
I was able to find a local Cuban Market that should have it, but they were out of it, they should be getting some on Thursday.

A Cuban market in SD? Is that the Latin American market on Morena?

MT

Gnoman - Thanks for the tips. I have tried the trick of asking my local grocery stores to order me a case. No dice, even though they carry Goya products. I was surprised that they wouldn't help me out, as the stores are fairly upscale, but I guess customer service these days just isn't what it used to be.

So I contacted Goya's distributors directly. Usually they can locate a nearby store, or order a case for someone, and have it delivered nearby. The distributor gave me the location of four Mexican grocery stores in the Bay Area that carry the Goya frozen passion fruit pulp, two are in San Francisco in the Mission district, and the other two are a short drive for me into good ol' O-Town.

Ran - a lot of folks around here use the Funkin packs of passion fruit puree. But they usually split up the big 5 liter order amongst 4 or 5 people, that way it only costs about $20 per person. That stuff is supposed to go a long way, since it still needs to be made into a syrup, and it's really easy to work with since it's already in liquid form.

I am going to buy some of the Goya passion fruit pulp today. It would be interesting to see how it compares to the frozen pf pulp that you just tried out. I still have a couple bottles of the Trader Vic's pf syrup, and I think I still might have a bottle of Monin's too. And I have access to the Funkin pf puree. So I think I'll make up a batch of everything. Maybe we can have a taste comparison, at Tiki Oasis?

TG

On 2009-06-30 15:21, Mai Tai wrote:
Gnoman - Thanks for the tips. I have tried the trick of asking my local grocery stores to order me a case. No dice, even though they carry Goya products. I was surprised that they wouldn't help me out, as the stores are fairly upscale, but I guess customer service these days just isn't what it used to be.

Unemployment must be at an all time low. Employers must be so desperate to staff their operations that they accept people who can only provide customer disservice. I've been using plastic lately, are stores still taking cash? USD? Or do I have to dig out my Euros? Do any brick-and-mortars take PayPal?

On 2009-06-30 14:12, arriano wrote:

On 2009-06-30 10:28, kick_the_reverb wrote:
I was able to find a local Cuban Market that should have it, but they were out of it, they should be getting some on Thursday.

A Cuban market in SD? Is that the Latin American market on Morena?

Yes, that is the place :)
I'll see if they got any of that tomorrow, if I have the time.
Ran

On 2009-06-30 15:21, Mai Tai wrote:

Ran - a lot of folks around here use the Funkin packs of passion fruit puree. But they usually split up the big 5 liter order amongst 4 or 5 people, that way it only costs about $20 per person. That stuff is supposed to go a long way, since it still needs to be made into a syrup, and it's really easy to work with since it's already in liquid form.

I am going to buy some of the Goya passion fruit pulp today. It would be interesting to see how it compares to the frozen pf pulp that you just tried out. I still have a couple bottles of the Trader Vic's pf syrup, and I think I still might have a bottle of Monin's too. And I have access to the Funkin pf puree. So I think I'll make up a batch of everything. Maybe we can have a taste comparison, at Tiki Oasis?

I thought of splitting the funkin batch amongst a few people, but I don't know that there are as many SD folks that are into mixing at home vs you guys in SF. Even if I just buy one, it works out to $24 per 2 liters of syrup, while the forzen stuff is $6-8 for the same quantity.
I'd love to do a taste test, If I get some Goya, I'll keep it in the freezer, plus I'll get the other frozen pulp that I found. Then we can prepare it on one of the days at Oasis, and do the taste test. Weird Uncle Tiki mentioned to me that he gets pulp from Whole Foods Market. I can probably look for some and bring that, too.
We could taste a little bit of each syrup, then mix in a drink and compare.

Ran

Has anybody tried Da Vinci's PF or the Boba Tea brand? http://www.bobateadirect.com/Passion-Fruit-Syrup-pr-280.html

On 2009-06-30 15:21, Mai Tai wrote:

So I contacted Goya's distributors directly. Usually they can locate a nearby store, or order a case for someone, and have it delivered nearby. The distributor gave me the location of four Mexican grocery stores in the Bay Area that carry the Goya frozen passion fruit pulp, two are in San Francisco in the Mission district, and the other two are a short drive for me into good ol' O-Town.

Hey Mai Tai

I've been trying to find this in the East Bay. I found Coco Lopez in Alameda but no Goya so far.
Would you mind sharing where you found the PF pulp in O-Town?

I'm about to order some of the Aunty Lilikoi but would really like to try the Goya.

In beachbum berry's book Sippin' Safari, he suggests using Finest Call passion fruit puree mix. Or he says you can make your own with frozen passion fruit pulp and equal amounts of sugar syrup. You can usually find the pulp in most latin markets.

Make our own with frozen passion fruit pulp? Say. That just might work. Why didn't we think of that before? Thanks. 8)

S
Swanky posted on Sat, Jan 9, 2010 8:54 AM

I now endorse Aunty Lilikoi's PFS. I ordered a few bottles and tried it last night. The taste is right. It's what we got used to with TV PFS. Two things: 1) Shake it before pouring 2) it is a bit stronger tasting than TV's, so you will want to dial back the amounts a bit to compensate.

Having an "off the shelf" source that has a consistant taste makes it a winner for me.

One real problem with it is the order form is not SSL. If that is a worry, call and order instead.

On 2010-01-09 08:54, Swanky wrote:
I now endorse Aunty Lilikoi's PFS. I ordered a few bottles and tried it last night. The taste is right. It's what we got used to with TV PFS. Two things: 1) Shake it before pouring 2) it is a bit stronger tasting than TV's, so you will want to dial back the amounts a bit to compensate.

Having an "off the shelf" source that has a consistant taste makes it a winner for me.

One real problem with it is the order form is not SSL. If that is a worry, call and order instead.

It's about time you finally tried their stuff. Lori Cardenas (aka Ms. Aunty Lilikoi....I guess Tony is Mr. Aunty Lilikoi) used to make up quart jars for me, which made it possible to ship more product for the same postage, but she doesn't do that any more because she can't ensure that they won't break in transit. The PFS is reasonably priced, but the shipping to the mainland is expensive.

S

On 2010-01-11 10:38, The Gnomon wrote:

On 2010-01-09 08:54, Swanky wrote:
I now endorse Aunty Lilikoi's PFS. I ordered a few bottles and tried it last night. The taste is right. It's what we got used to with TV PFS. Two things: 1) Shake it before pouring 2) it is a bit stronger tasting than TV's, so you will want to dial back the amounts a bit to compensate.

Having an "off the shelf" source that has a consistant taste makes it a winner for me.

One real problem with it is the order form is not SSL. If that is a worry, call and order instead.

It's about time you finally tried their stuff. Lori Cardenas (aka Ms. Aunty Lilikoi....I guess Tony is Mr. Aunty Lilikoi) used to make up quart jars for me, which made it possible to ship more product for the same postage, but she doesn't do that any more because she can't ensure that they won't break in transit. The PFS is reasonably priced, but the shipping to the mainland is expensive.

I got 4 bottles for a total of $37 shipped to TN. Not bad. Better than using Toranis fo sho!

V

Anyone ever tried the Baron Passion fruit ? I bought a bottle today, it's 20% passion fruit, and really smells like the fruit.
It comes from St Lucia : http://www.baronfoodsltd.com/passionconc.htm
And they have Grenadine too.

And they have banana ketchup, too.

On 2010-03-30 10:21, virani wrote:
Anyone ever tried the Baron Passion fruit ? I bought a bottle today, it's 20% passion fruit, and really smells like the fruit.
It comes from St Lucia : http://www.baronfoodsltd.com/passionconc.htm
And they have Grenadine too.

Did you get the concentrate or the sauce? 20% passion fruit doesn't sound like concentrate to me. Anyway, assuming that the concentrate has no sugar in it, it could be a possible improvement over using frozen pulp since, presumably, there wouldn't be any pulp.

V

they say concentrate, but really it's already a syrup. Lots of sugar in it.

Anybody mentioned Torani yet?
They're out of San Francisco and are made with cane sugar instead of corn syrup. Really good syrups, if you haven't heard of them.
I can't find any Orgeat here in Denver that's not made with corn syrup, so I had to order some from Torani to have sent here. I have a bottle of their passion fruit syrup as well, and it tastes dandy fine in drinks that call for it.

TG

Why, yes. Yes they have.

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On 2007-07-09 16:12, mattesq wrote:
do not buy the torani syrup. i purchased both their orgeat and passion fruit syrups and they are drink killers.

On 2007-07-09 16:26, velveteenlounge wrote:
I didn't think the Torani was disgusting or anything, but it doesn't taste like the kind made from real passion fruit.

I liked the TV orgeat better than the Torani, but I can't buy TV in the store and now, with the passion fruit being changed, I have less reason to order from TV, so it's probably either going to be Torani or, more likely, make my own.

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On 2007-07-12 13:53, jazzman wrote:
One discussef in another thread that I like is Kukoi brand Passion Fruit except that it's turning solid after a few months in my fridge. The Kukoi Coconut syrup is by far the best one overall I've tried BTW, I like it even better than Coco Lopez and the Trader's. I've used Torani PF in the past and it's tasty but doesn't really have the true flavor of PF. I bought the Monin PF at Surfas while I was in LA last week (they also stock alot of Fee Bros inculding Falernum BTW). The Monin doesn't seem to have real PF in it either, it just says "Passion Fruit Flavor," although there's some thick stuff in the top of the bottle that looks like it could be derived from fruit. I haven't tried it yet but I'm happy with other Monin products, especially their pomegranate syrup.
-Sam

[ Edited by: jazzman 2007-07-12 20:41 ]

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On 2008-02-24 14:42, mangrovemike wrote:
OK- I am pretty embarrassed. It has been more than 6 mos since I started this thread and all of this time I was without Passion Fruit syrup. What a gap in my bar tending repertoire. But after analyzing the posts, here are my rankings from everyone's input:

  1. The best by far is making your own (I need to have the time and the will power to work hard)
  2. Aunt Lilikoi: cannot find anyone that didn't’t like it
  3. Monin is the next best, but some people don’t like
  4. Finest call: mint or menthol flavor??
  5. Teisseire, only one person who liked it 2nd best, but it is hard to find on line. Looks like it is from a French company…. Phuket foods. Too weird for me to order from
  6. Torani’s: drink killer. Not a lot of fans
  7. Fee Brothers: some fans
  8. Kukoi brand: can’t find on the internet

After being frozen in fear of ruining more drinks like I did w/the much un-improved TV formula, I ordered the Aunt Lilikoi: very fruity, but also very sweet. I now have started going thru all of the recipes again and pleased to report every drink went down the hatch, not the drain like w/the TV brand. Thumbs up for me!

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