Singani: The National Spirit of Bolivia

What is Singani?

Singani is the national spirit of Bolivia, and it is a brandy made with a very specific variety of Grapes. They first make ferment and make a wine from a very specific type of grape and then they distill that to get to the wonderful end result of the spirit.

Pisco & Singani have a shared origin and use a similar process but Singani is definitively its own Unique spirit, with its own history and customs. Singani can only be produced in Bolivia and also can only be made from Grapes grown and harvested 5,200 ft above sea level. Bolivia is an incredibly mountainous country and the Moscatel Alexandria grape grows really well in that high altitude.

How do I use it?

It is quite delicate and floral, so In my opinion, it is a great substitute for Vodka! You can also use it in place of an Pisco cocktails or drinks as well since they are both quite similar.

There are also some very classic cocktails that you can make such as the Choofly. The Choofly is a very traditional Bolivian cocktail that uses Ginger, Lime and Singani. It is similar to a Chilcano, which uses Pisco but with the extra floral nature.

Choofly Recipe:
2.0 oz Singani 63
1.0 oz Lime Juice
0.75 oz Ginger Syrup
Shake all ingredients and serve in a glass with fresh rocks.
Top with Soda Water.

What are some Good Bottles?

The most commonly found bottle in the U.S is Singani 63, which is owned by Steven Soderbergh. Soderbergh is a Hollywood director and he does a lot of Content around Singani so definitely check them out. He is very active online and really trying to bring awareness to this great spirit.

It is also the primary bottle that I use at my Bar & Restaurant.

There is also Rujero and Casa Real which are other brands of that you can find in the U.S

Cachaça Cocktails You Can Make!

There are some truly amazing Cachaça Cocktails out there, and in this post I will be showing you just three of the most incredible. Cachaça is a wonderfully complex and delicious spirit and there is so much more that you can do with it than just make Caipirinhas!

For a long time Cachaça was just relegated to being used solely in Caipirinhas, but the truth is that like with any great spirit there is so much you can do with it. There are so many cachaça cocktails you can make, and in very different styles.

There are three Cachaça Cocktails that immediately come to mind that you can make at home, namely the Rabo De Galo, the Batida, and the Lil’ Smokey. Each of these cocktails exemplifies the versatility of Cachaça and showcases just how much you can do with it.

The Rabo De Galo is considered the 2nd most popular cocktail to come out of Brazil, and is particularly popular in the south of the country. The Batida is more of an informal cocktail but one that shows the more playful side of Cachaça in a cocktail. It is a great template to build amazing cocktails off of.

The Lil’ Smokey in particular is one I have fallen in love with. It comes from Ivy Mix over at Leyenda in Brooklyn, an amazing Bar focusing on Latin American spirits and cocktails. It is also featured in her book, Spirits of Latin America which I will link right below, in case you are interested.

Spirits of Latin America: https://amzn.to/3ko6gAn

Cocktail Recipes: —————————————

Rabo De Galo:

0.75 oz Cachaca
0.75 oz Cynar
0.75 oz Sweet Vermouth

Stir ingredients together, serve over a large cube and garnish with a Lime Twist.

Batida:

2 oz of Aged Cachaca
1 oz Coconut Milk
1 oz Passion Fruit Syrup
1 oz Sweetened Condensed Milk
0.5 oz Fresh Lime Juice
0.5 oz Cinnamon Syrup

Blend all of the ingredients in a blender, pour and serve.

Lil Smokey:

4 Lime Quarters
5 Sage Leaves
0.75 oz Pineapple Juice
1.5 oz Mezcal
0.5 oz Cachaca

Muddle the sage and lime, add other ingredients, top with ice and serve.

What is Cachaça? The National Spirit of Brazil

Cachaça is the National Spirit of Brazil

Every country or region in the world has its own iconic spirit. Each one with its own unique flavors, traditions, stories, and recipes. Mexico has Tequila, Scotland has Scotch, France has Champagne, and the U.S has Bourbon. In Brazil, Cachaça is king. While not well known throughout the world, in Brazil there are hundreds of thousands of different kinds of this delicious spirit. 

SO WHAT EXACTLY IS CACHAÇA?

It is a Brazilian distilled spirit made from sugarcane juice and has a flavor reminiscent of Rum but is more vegetal and robust in nature. Rum and Cachaça are actually like “cousins” as they both come from sugar cane. The difference between them is that Cachaça is made from raw sugarcane juice, while Rum is usually made from molasses.

Rum is more well known around the world but Cachaça actually came about first. It’s production dates back to the 1500’s when the Portuguese arrived in Brazil and has been a mainstay in Brazilian culture ever since. Rum was distilled a couple hundred years later in other parts of the Americas, specifically the Caribbean.

How Cachaça is Made

For a really long time here in the United States, anytime you saw a bottle of Cachaça anywhere it was usually labeled as Brazilian rum. Not only is that really misleading but it’s also just wrong. Cachaça and Rum have a similar origin story but they are definitely not the same spirit. Both cachaça and rum both technically come from the same plant, Sugar Cane to be exact, but just in different ways.

Cachaça is a spirit that’s distilled from the freshly pressed sugar cane juice whereas rum is a spirit distilled from molasses. When they make sugar they take sugar cane and press it and refine the juice into those nice white sugar crystals. At the same time that it makes sugar, it also makes molasses as a byproduct. So to make rum they take that molasses and they ferment & distill that. Rum tends to have a little bit more of a perceived sweetness about it, while its Brazilian Cousin is usually more vegetal and grassy in nature.

Taste of Cachaça

Just like with any spirit, the flavor of Cachaça can vary greatly depending on the quality of production. Like any spirit, Cachaça has some iconic cocktail recipes that make great use of its natural flavors. The Caipirinha is the first one that comes to mind, and for very good reason. It is the most well known Brazilian cocktail ever invented! It is drank all over Brazil and has had success across the world. Of course the Caipirinha isn’t the only Cachaça based cocktail, even if it is the most well known and praised.

There are many other fantastic cocktails made with this incredible spirit such as the excellent Batida. I’ve always been fascinated by Cachaça’s versatility. It’s normally compared to Rum due to their shared origin, but with a funkiness not unlike that of Tequila or Mezcal. It can even be aged and treated like a Whiskey.

Yet despite that versatility, many bartenders I’ve met have never even heard of it. Most don’t know what it is or how to use it. Plenty of bars I have worked in simply didn’t carry the spirit at all, and as a Brazilian bartender that never sat well with me.

I want to show that there is a space for Cachaça in the American Cocktail scene. A good Cachaça can stand up to any decent whiskey, tequila or rum and deserves its spot on any bar shelf.