Cachaça Cocktails.CAIPIRINHA FROM RIO DE JANEIRO

         DELICIOUS CAIPIRINHAS  RECIPES





Ingredients


4 lime wedges (from 1/2 lime)
7 green grapes
2 teaspoons raw sugar, such as turbinado or Demerara
1/4 cup (2 ounces) cachaca
3 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) semisweet white wine such as Gewürztraminer
8 to 10 ice cubes


Special equipment:
1 (4-to 5-inch) wooden skewer
In cocktail shaker, stir together lime wedges, 5 grapes, and sugar. Using wooden muddler or spoon, pound and press until fruit is crushed and juices are released. Add cachaca, wine, and ice, and shake vigorously for 25 seconds. Pour into old-fashioned glass. Thread remaining 2 grapes onto skewer, place in drink, and serve immediately.






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Amazonia


2 tablespoons (1 ounce) cachaca
6 fresh mint leaves
8 to 10 ice cubes
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) apple juice
1 tablespoon (1/2 ounce) freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon (1/2 ounce) simple syrup
6 tablespoons (3 ounces) Champagne or any sparkling wine
1 apple slice




In cocktail shaker, stir together cachaca and mint. Using wooden muddler or spoon, pound and press just until mint is bruised. Add ice, apple juice, lime juice, and simple syrup, and shake vigorously for 25 seconds. Strain into Champagne glass. Top with Champagne. Place apple slice in drink and serve immediately.




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Tangerine-Ginger Caipirinha


•3 small chopped seeded tangerines or small oranges (no need to peel)
•1/4 cup sugar
•1 tablespoon grated peeled ginger
•3/4 cup tangerine juice
•1 1/2 cup cachaça (Brazilian sugarcane liquor) or vodka.
Divide tangerines or small oranges among 6 tumblers. Add 2 teaspoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon grated peeled ginger to each glass. Crush the ingredients in the bottom of the glass with a muddler or handle of a wooden spoon. Top each drink with 2 tablespoons tangerine juice and 1/4 cup cachaça (Brazilian sugarcane liquor) or vodka. Fill glasses with ice cubes, stir, and serve.




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Plum Caipirinha


•2 ripe, firm red plums
•1/2 cup refined, white sugar
•1/4 cup brown sugar
•1/4 cup water
•3 limes, diced and pitted
•1 cup cachaça
Halve and pit plums. Whisk the sugars and water together in a small saucepan. Add the plums and simmer over medium heat, until tender but not mushy, about 10 minutes. Cool plums in the liquid.




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Strawberry & Basil Caipirinha
•2 oz. Leblon Cachaça
•3 strawberries
•3 basil leaves - torn
•¼ lime
•2 tsp superfine sugar or 1 oz simple syrup
Muddle the lime, strawberries, basil and sugar in a shaker. Fill the shaker with ice and add Leblon Cachaça. Shake vigorously. Serve in a rocks glass. Garnish with a strawberry and a basil leaf.

Coconut water (água de coco )

Coconut water (água de coco in Portuguese) is the clear liquid inside young green coconuts. Inside the coconut is a round cavity which is filled with this liquid, surrounded by a jelly-like substance. As the coconut matures, the liquid evaporates, and the jelly hardens into the familiar white "meat" of a dried coconut. It is very refreshing drink, and in Brazil is usually served directly from a chilled fresh coconut, which has been opened on the top with a machete. Coconut vendors are ubiquitous on Brazilian beaches, and can be found as well on streets and squares all over Brazil. Coconut water is extremely nutritious, without having many calories, and is often recommended for people with dietary products. It has only 16.7 calories in 100 grams, and has high amounts of potassium and and other minerals. In fact, per ounce, coconut water has more electrolytes than most sport drinks, and more potassium than bananas. It is a sterile liquid, so there is no health concerns in areas where water might be polluted. It is even used as an intravenous hydrating solution in some tropical areas where no saline solution is available.