One of the aspects I really enjoy about working with my local wine and spirits shop, the Divine Wine Emporium, is that we get some great visitors who travel with our hardworking sales reps. Some interesting people represent compelling brands and categories of adult beverages, and I have a great time learning about them. Of course, having the opportunity to taste said products is a lovely bonus as well.

Last week, the regional rep from Avuá Cachaça paid a visit to The Boss and me. Aside from being friendly and passionate about Cachaça, he became my favorite person that day when these were introduced to us:

Not a bad way to start your day! By the way, some of you may be wondering, "So what is this stuff, Cachaça, anyway?" Cachaça (pronounced kah-SHAH-sah), is a faction within the rum category. Rather than distilling molasses in rum production, Cachaça production involves fermenting and distilling the cane juice that is directly milled and pressed from sugar cane. Cachaça can only be produced in Brazil, however other forms of Cachaça are generally known as Rhum Agricole (popular in the French Caribbean islands). Cachaça uses single distillation, which preserves the natural delicate character of the sugar cane; many industrial Cachaça producers use columns for efficiency and a lighter flavor, while Avuá uses single pot stills to retain maximum flavor developed from fermentation and slow-controlled disillation. Barrel aging is done via many local strains of wood, and is done frequently; the majority of Cachaça we currently receive in the U.S. is a white, unaged spirit. We are slowly receiving more wood-aged examples, and the Avuá lineup confirms this.

I was introduced to this spirit for the first time by The Greatest Wife In The World after she had been away on a trip to Brazil...little did I know that Cachaça is the country's national spirit (the same way Tequila is for Mexico or Bourbon is for the United States). It was there that she experienced caipirinhas, a Cachaça-based cocktail that uses a lime-superfine sugar muddle with ice in its most simplistic form. However, the bounty of exotic fruits, notably passionfruit, leads to something otherworldly (from what I have been told).

When we tasted through the lineup, I noticed a common link; fragrance. Cachaça is generally an aromatic spirit with a combination of tropical fruit, grass/earth, and a wide-ranging bouquet of flowers. The various strains of wood all lend their own unique compounds, some with baking spices, others with a floral perfume (which remind me of Japanese whisky aged in local oak in some ways), and still others that are neutral, thereby allowing the distillate to slowly oxidize and concentrate in a tropical aging environment.

I had mentioned the Avuá in a recent post, but to go into more detail the Prata has some texture and richness, packed with tropical flavors. There is also the Still Strength, which is a 90 proof Cachaça made from a different distillate from the Prata, a bit lighter and more fiery making it ideal in a cocktail since the higher proof will stand up to the addition of non-alcoholic mixers.

From there, all of the oak-aged examples use the distillate that made the Prata. Avuá Oak is a French oak-aged product that almost makes the Cachaça seem Cognac-like. Avuá Amburana is made from local Amburana wood, and let me tell you...when you stick your nose in the glass, it smells like you just opened a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch! The Avuá Balsamo (not yet available in CT or all markets) is a very aromatic local redwood with herbaceous tones. The Jequitiba Rosa is a rosewood-aged Cachaça that gives a fruity character with a little bitterness (think of a less pungent Campari here). The Avuá Tapinhoa is a single barrel product that is a recipe dating back decades to the Master Distiller's father. Very coconutty with wildflower aromas. The finish on all of the Cachaças goes on and on.

It was a very cool experience. Prices range from $35 for the Prata to $80 in some markets for the Tapinhoa. Avuá's textured and fragrant Cachaças, innovative native wood-aging, and commitment to promoting the category, all place it in a unique position to help grow the name recognition of Cachaça. For the record, we had to bring in the Prata and Amburana to put on the shelves. It's a fantastic way to be introduced to Cachaça and I hope you enjoy one of these, whether in caiprinhas, other cocktails, or simply as-is.

(Tip of the cap to the folks at Avuá and Worldwide Wines for setting up this tasting.)