South American Vehicles of Drunkenness, Part 2

I spent the begining of this year living in Buenos Aires, writing a lot of mediocre poetry and drinking the afternoons into nights, contemplating the purpose of my life. Between infrequent swells of inspiration, I found myself browsing through my Lonely Planet, tempted by the images of Brazil... the beaches, the bodies, the architecture... In hindsight, my reasons for never going were really foolish; I spent so much time learning to speak Spanish, (and it was hard enough,) that I was terrified by the thought of having to speak another new language. I returned to the US having never consumed a single caipirinha in Brazil. No sex. No Rio. No Portuguese... what a drag.

Cachaca is the national spirit of Brazil and its playful and unique flavor embodies the spirit of the Brazilian people. While many bartenders refer to cachaca as "a type of rum", this is not the case. If cachaca is rum, then gin is vodka.

Rum is distilled from molasses, the risidual sticky matter left after reducing sugarcane juice. The origin of the sugar cane, the aging process, and the handling of the molasses itself give different types of rums their respectively unique flavors. Rum is made all over the world, and cachaca is only made in Brasil. The distinctively musky flavor of cachaca comes from the fermented sugar cane mash from which it is distilled. The woody notes of more artisanal brands come from the careful aging in barrels made from indigenous Brazilian oak, cherry, balsam, and almond trees. Among the sugar-based Latin American Spirits are also seco, charanda, and aquardiente.

A common lie about cachaca is that Brazilians think it's cheap and junky and meant for the lower classes. Although this rumor is probably rooted largely in the spirit's history, most liquor stores in the US stock huge, commercial, musky dishwater brands that really are junk. The truth is that Brazilians take their liquor very seriously, and drink the good stuff at home while exporting all the crap to us white folk. I use Batuque, pictured at right, not just because of the hot booty bottle, but also because it's a high quality brand that makes a caipirinha fit for the most discriminating, samba-dancing palate.

The subject of sugar is post-worthy in itself, especially when you consider how many cocktails are essentially a spirit, bitters, and some form of sugar. In the US, most commercial sugars are produced from beets and bleached to all hell. Don't be fooled by brown sugar in the US either, it's probably bleachy beety sugar with a little molasses syrup added for color and texture. At Red Feather, we use a natural brown sugar made from unrefined cane and containing risidual molasses of about 5%. I made the decision to use a brown sugar after doing a little research about popular sugars in Brazil. I think my decision is justified as it is probably the closest match in terms of flavor. Here's Mark, the best bartender in Boise, and a caipirinha made with the following recipe:


Caipirinha

Muddle:
1/2 a Lime (key lime if available) into
.5 oz Brown Sugar Simple Syrup until it looks like pond water.
Add:
2 oz. Batuque Cachaca
Roll or shake lightly with ice. Strain over new ice and garnish with lime quarters.