What does a caipirinha taste like?
A caipirinha tastes tart, juicy and grassy: fresh lime muddled with sugar and cachaça, a Brazilian sugarcane spirit, served over crushed ice.
Caipirinha
lime, sugar and cachaça
The caipirinha is Brazil's national cocktail: lime wedges muddled with sugar in the glass, then cachaça and crushed ice. Cachaça is made from fresh sugarcane juice, not molasses like most rum, so it tastes grassier, fruitier and a little funky. The muddled lime, peel and all, gives it a juicy tang with a faint bitter edge from the oils, and the sugar keeps it in balance. It's like a rustic, chunkier daiquiri that tastes greener and more alive. It's stronger than it looks, since there's no mixer.
Where you’ll see it
On Brazilian steakhouse and restaurant menus and many cocktail bars, in a rocks glass with lime chunks. You'll also see fruit versions with passion fruit or strawberry, and a caipiroska made with vodka.
Order it if you like a daiquiri or mojito and want something a little wilder and greener.
Quick questions
- What is cachaça?
- A Brazilian spirit distilled from fresh sugarcane juice. It tastes grassier and fruitier than most rum.
- Is a caipirinha strong?
- Fairly. It's mostly cachaça with lime and sugar, no soda, so it's about as strong as a margarita.