Amarula is a

cream liqueur A cream liqueur is a liqueur that includes dairy cream and a generally flavourful liquor among its ingredients. Notable cream liqueurs include: *Amarula, which uses distillate of fermented South African Sclerocarya birrea, marula fruits *Iri ...

from

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. It is made with sugar, cream and the fruit of the African marula tree (''Sclerocarya birrea'') which is also locally called the elephant tree or the marriage tree. It has an alcohol content of 17% by volume (34 proof). It has had some success at international

spirit ratings With a growing number of offerings, such as those produced by an increasing number of microdistilleries, various mechanisms have arisen to provide reviews and opinions of individual varieties of spirits. These events generally use expert panels ...

competitions, winning a gold medal at the 2009

San Francisco World Spirits Competition The San Francisco World Spirits Competition was founded in 2001 by Anthony Dias Blue as an off-shoot of the San Francisco International Wine Competition. It assesses hundreds of entrants annually (1,407 in 2013 from 63 countries) with tastings i ...

. It has the taste of slightly fruity

caramel Caramel ( or ) is a range of food ingredients made by heating sugars to high temperatures. It is used as a flavoring in puddings and desserts, as a filling in bonbons or candy bars, as a topping for ice cream and custard, and as a colorant ...

History

Amarula was first marketed by Southern Liqueur Company of South Africa (the current trademark owners and wholly owned subsidiary of Distell Group Limited) as a liqueur in September 1989, the Amarula spirit having been launched in 1983.

Flavors

# Amarula Cream Liqueur 17% ABV # Amarula Ethiopian Coffee Cream Liqueur 15.5% ABV # Raspberry, Chocolate & African Baobab Cream Liqueur 15.5% ABV (launched in 2019) # Amarula Vanilla Spice Cream Liqueur 15.5% ABV # Amarula Vegan Liqueur 15.5% ABV # Khanyisa Limited Edition 15.5% ABV - Proceeds go towards rehabilitating Khanyisa, an orphaned albino baby elephant cruelly injured in a poacher's snare.

Elephant-associated marketing

African bush elephant The African bush elephant (''Loxodonta africana''), also known as the African savanna elephant, is a species of elephant native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of three extant elephant species and, along with the African forest elephant, one ...

s enjoy eating the fruit of the marula tree. Because of the marula tree's association with elephants, the distiller has made them its symbol and supports elephant conservation efforts, co-funding the Amarula Elephant Research Programme at the

University of Natal The University of Natal was a university in the former South African province Natal which later became KwaZulu-Natal. The University of Natal no longer exists as a distinct legal entity, as it was incorporated into the University of KwaZulu- ...

, Durban. For marketing efforts, it produces elephant-themed collectible items. The brand supports elephant research to protect elephants and conserve the population. In 2002, the Amarula Elephant Research Program (AERP) was launched under the direction of Rob Slotow, a professor at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban, South Africa. This primarily researches the way of life, the range of movement and the behavior of the African elephant with the aim of protecting the habitat of the elephants and securing their future in the wild.

Awards

# Amarula Raspberry, Chocolate & African Baobab Cream Liqueur (Master - Liqueur Masters 2022) # Amarula Cream Liqueur (2022 Best South African Cream - World Liqueur Awards)

Distribution

Outside of South Africa, Amarula has had particular success in

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

References

External links

* (age-restricted access) {{South African cuisine Cream liqueurs Fruit liqueurs South African brands South African cuisine South African alcoholic drinks Food and drink introduced in 1983