Cachaça is often called by the misnomer "liqueur" but, while it is closer to a "rum" than a "liqueur", most rums are made from molasses (and a very few directly from sugar cane juice similar to cachaça), Brazilian cachaça is really not a "rum" in the traditional sense but, rather, a uniquely Brazilian product with a distinctive taste that is very different from most rums.
While many Latin American countries also produce a distilled spirit from fresh sugar cane called "Aguardente", this is where the similarity with cachaça ends. "Aguardente", which means "burning water", is known (and justly named) because of the sharp sting on the tongue and the fiery hangovers from this rough spirit. Not so with cachaça, which is smooth and mellow in flavor and possesses a wonderful aroma of freshly cut sugar cane.
Most Brazilians commonly refer to cachaça as Pinga. Brazilians who drink cachaça pure, straight and unmixed (pura) will often purposefully spill a few drops for the saints before imbibing. The first shot of any cachaça imbibed straight (pura) is often referred to as the guia, or guide, as it clears the path and leads the way for all those shots that will certainly follow.
Brazil produces about two billion liters of cachaça annually and exports about 400 million liters, leaving approximately 1.6 billion liters for domestic consumption—about 11 liters (three gallons more or less) for every man, woman and child in Brazil!
No one knows for sure who first started making cachaça but the earliest report dates to about 1610 in the state of Bahia (then a Portuguese captaincy). Many believe that cachaça production began soon after the introduction of sugarcane into Brazil––some time prior to 1550 or less than fifty years after Cabral "discovered" Brazil. Whether accidentally or on purpose, sugarcane juice was allowed to ferment thereby producing alcohol. Eventually, some brilliant (and thirsty) soul realized that distilling the fermented cane juice made it a more potent potable and, therein, cachaça was born.
For centuries, cachaça was made almost exclusively for slaves and natives. The Brazilian elite regarded cachaça as a poor man’s drink, preferring instead imported whiskeys and cognacs. In many ways, this is still the case, however, in recent years, cachaçarias (restaurant/bars featuring cachaça) have begun to spring up in most larger Brazilian cities. Many cachaçarias offer an extensive menu of different cachaças often numbering in the hundreds.
Poor man's drink or not, cachaça has become an integral part of Brazilian culture and its significance ranks right up there with soccer (futebol), Carnaval and Samba as Brazilian national icons. In the past few years, cachaça has become an international sensation as the world has discovered the delights of the Caipirinha. An example of this international phenomenon is demonstrated by the fact that you can actually order a Caipirinha in the Brazil Bar in, of all places, Zagreb, Croatia!
In hopes of boosting cachaça to the heights of acceptance, respectability and especially sales that Mexican tequila has enjoyed over the past twenty years or so, the Brazilian government has imposed several new cachaça regulatory measures. In 2001, then Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso signed a decree that established cachaça as an official and exclusive name for Brazilian cane alcohol. Not specific enough said the world. So, in October 2003 the new Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva ("Lula"), issued another decree specifying both the names cachaça and the Caipirinha as strictly Brazilian in origin. Brazil has also sent this issue to the World Trade Organization in the hope that the names cachaça and Caipirinha will eventually gain intellectual property rights protection under international law. The Brazilian government is also currently involved in negotiations with the European Union in attempts to ensure that the name cachaça will only be applied to products of Brazilian origin. This may be somewhat unlikely since the Portuguese (a member in good standing of the European Union) produce their own version of cachaça from grapes.
Cachaça is made from the juice of the first pressing of sugarcane. The harvested sugarcane is washed and pressed through large metal rollers to extract the juice. Next, the juice is passed through a filtration process to extract any cane fragments or other foreign matter and then on to fermentation tanks. Most often, a leavening agent—such as fubá (corn meal) or rice bran—is added to the cane juice prior to fermentation. Besides producing alcohol itself, the leavening agent also adds its own distinctive flavor and aroma. With most cachaça producers, the specific leavening agent(s) used as well as the recipe (including fermentation time, temperature, etc.) are tightly guarded trade secrets. Whether or not a leavening agent is added, the sugarcane juice is fermented from one to three days (depending upon the prevailing ambient temperature), then distilled at a steady temperature of approximately 90º C, cooled and filtered to remove any impurities. The first distillation batch is called cabeceira. It is very strong and often used to make liqueurs. The second batch is called cachaça boa and at 18% proof, it is the batch that is sent on to be bottled or aged. The third batch is called água fraca and at 12% proof is often returned to the next batch.
Much like rum, most fine cachaça's are aged in barrels of European or American oak or Brazilian amburana, cedar, freijó, garapa, balsa, vinhático, jequitibá or other woods. The aging process yields a cachaça with a smoother taste and most often a yellow or caramel color. The time that cachaça is aged varies depending upon the barrel size, type of the wood, relative temperature, and humidity as well as the storage environment. Brazilian law stipulates that cachaça must be aged at least one year to be labeled "aged".
Cachaça is the primary ingredient in a Caipirinha (pronounced kai-purr-EEN-ya), the national cocktail of Brazil as well as numerous other batidas (cachaça and fruit or fruit juice mixtures).