Brazil’s cachaça, the country’s national spirit that is distilled directly from fresh sugarcane juice, has been produced throughout the country since the 1530s. But the spirit is still a relatively new phenomenon in the U.S. Until early 2013, cachaça was misclassified as “Brazilian rum” by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. And yet in Brazil, high-quality cachaça is produced throughout the country by small producers uncompromising in their skill and traditional craft.
In that tradition comes Avuá Cachaça, which consists of two single-estate, limited-production spirits – one unaged (Prata), one aged in Brazilian wood (Amburana).
Distilled by one of Brazil’s only female distillers using a family recipe honed over three generations, Avuá Cachaça begins in the single-estate sugarcane fields of a small, family-owned farm situated in the hills near Rio de Janeiro. The cane, composed of three specifically chosen varietals, is hand-cut, ground with a waterwheel, and fermented for less than 24 hours using airborne wild yeasts, before being distilled in a copper-crafted alembic still at the distillery located in a long, thin valley between the hills of Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais states. There is also an emphasis on sustainability and ethical production in the creation of Avuá: It is organically produced with only renewable energy with water piped from a natural source to grind the cane and a boiler for the still that is fired by the residuals of the sugarcane pulp, known as bagasse; the local workers are given comfortable lodging as well as reading activities and education for their children.
The result is the following two products:
Avuá Cachaça Prata ($35.00) – Avuá’s silver cachaça is rested in steel tanks for six months before bottling. It is described as a lush, crisp spirit with subtle floral notes perfect for creative variations on spirit-forward cocktails, such as the Negroni or Old Maid, or the famous classic peasant cocktail, the Caipirinha. Slightly bready on the nose with notes of mild lime and citrus, cinnamon and sarsaparilla, it has a clean finish and balanced structure.
Avuá Cachaça Amburana ($50.00) – Matured for up to two years in casks made from Amburana wood – indigenous only to South America – this wood lends the aged cachaça warm, savory notes on the nose and the palate, ranging from nutmeg and honey to spice and basil.
“There are over 7,000 cachaça producers in Brazil, many of which are extremely small farms run by local families,” says Nathan Whitehouse, co-founder of Avuá Cachaça. “The country’s small distillers have their own distinctive techniques and age in woods that showcase the tremendous natural diversity of Brazil. Avuá reflects the range of cachaças known in Brazil, where there are both ‘highland’ (Minas Gerais) and ‘lowland’ (Paraty) styles.” Whitehouse collaborated with a family of artisanal distillers with more than 80 years of cachaça distilling tradition to develop Avuá Cachaça together with fellow entrepreneur and Brazil enthusiast Pete Nevenglosky, and the New York and London-based design team, Designed by Rook, seeking to share the excitement they felt about Brazil’s elegance by developing this brand along with the distilling family.