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siptripping:BELO HORIZONTE, BRAZIL

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Belo Horizonte is THE place to go for cocktail innovation and excitement.

Brazil’s

18,600

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C achaça brands like Leblon, Sagatiba and Boca Loca have capitalized on the glamour of

Rio de Janeiro, with its supermodels, fashion scene, geology and role as host for global entertainment and sporting events (including the annual Rock in Rio Music Festival and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games). But if you want to get to the source of how bartenders work with the spirit and how their followers enjoy drinking it, consider a visit to Belo Horizonte, 275 miles to the north. The city, home to 18,600 bars and restaurants (more than Rio and business center Sao Paulo), is located in the state of Minas Gerais, where most of the production of cachaça takes place. Much of the cocktail action can be found in bars lining the streets of the trendy Savassi and Lourdes neigh-borhoods, and at several spots on the second floor of the bohemian, art gallery-like Edifício Maleta (the city’s former “grand hotel”) in downtown Belo Horizonte. Within those bustling hubs are two types of bars. On one end of the spectrum, there are casual cachaçerias that showcase dozens or hundreds of expressions of the spirit, either in shots, flights or in caipirinha cocktails that take full advantage of Brazil’s bounty of fruit and produce. On the other, there are fashionable destina-tion bars generating a buzz through menus with reinvented variations of the Negroni, Bloody Mary and Mint Julep, as

well as completely new inventions that delight even the staunchest cachaça purist. A group of trail-blazing bartend-ers and cocktail consultants based in Belo Horizonte are driving the second category of bars. They firmly believe their emphasis on the spirit’s versatility will foster cachaça’s next wave of global popularity. Their collective goal is to create cocktails that will get word out to locals and international visitors that there is more to life than the sweet and sturdy caipirinha. Tony Harion, who does double duty as a brand ambas-sador for Grey Goose and a bar menu consultant through his company, Mixing Bar Premium Cocktails, explains why “BH” is the ultimate place to experience the past, present and future of local Brazilian flavor. “I actually like the fact that at au-thentic old school cachaça bars, such as Via Cristina, where you can order a tray of cachaças to taste the spirit’s range,” Harion says. “I regularly go to Via Cristina with friends to sample several cachaças, sometimes exploring differ-ent styles of cachaças or new brands. The cocktails are simple, and you can really focus on learning about different types of the spirit.” Unlike the posh cocktail bars of New York or London, Harion and fellow

Cachaça, regarded by some as a cousin to rum, had its origins in the early 1500s, when it is said that a Por-tuguese colonist brought the first cuttings of sugar cane over to Brazil from Madeira Island. The spirit is created by distilling sug-ar cane in pot stills, and like many new world spirits, was initially embraced by the working classes. How-ever, in recent decades, cachaça was transformed by various distilleries, which refined the distilling process, developed sub categories (aged and non-aged), and ultimately, launched it internationally with great success.

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consultant Joao Morandi (holding court at Dub at Edifício Maleta) stress that the bars that are moving, shaking and shaping cocktail trends are far more laid back and welcoming. Although the best cocktail bars may be a challenge to find without the insider insight of Harion, Morandi and their colleagues, finding them is richly rewarding. The way the bartenders clearly have a great time on the job, and connect with their customers and each other is not just infectious—it is Brazilian on every sensory level. “If a bar or restaurant owner is serious about being a viable part of the craft cocktail scene, they need a very capable person behind the bar to keep people exited and interested, and stretch things beyond the caipirinha,” says Morandi in advising visitors on how to search out the best cocktail bars with the best bartenders. “We are part of a new world for cachaça; we are broadening the definition of it by challenging ourselves to design new inventions that create a buzz around the world.”

CaChaCerias/BasiC Bars

Via CristinaR. Cristina, 1203 - Santo AntônioBelo Horizonte +55 31 3296-8343www.viacristina.com.br

Nine Lounge BarR. da Bahia, 1148 – CentroBelo Horizonte +55 31 3024-9403

Tize Bar e ButequimR. Curitiba, 2205 – CentroBelo Horizonte +55 31 3337 4374www.bartize.com.br/

CoCktail Bars

MeetMe at The YardRua Curitiba, 2578 – LourdesBelo Horizonte +55 31 3297 0909meetmebh.com.br

JângalR. Outono, 523 – CruzeiroBelo Horizonte +55 31 3653 8947jangalbh.com

GilboaRua Pium-Í, 772 – CarmoBelo Horizonte +55 31 3646-2433

DubRua da Bahia, 1148 - LourdesBelo Horizonte+55 31 3234-2405http://dubmaletta.tumblr.com/

other Points of interest

Trindade Bar e RestaurantR. Alvarenga Peixoto, 388 – LourdesBelo Horizonte +55 31 2512-4479www.trindadebrasil.com.br/

Beautifully crafted caipirinhas are only the beginning at Trindade, helmed by Bralzilian culinary televi-sion personality Fred Trindade. It’s one of the city’s top dining spots.

Mercado CentralAv. Augusto de Lima, 744 – CentroBelo Horizonte +55 31 3274-9434mercadocentral.com.br

If you’re inspired to practice your caipirinha-making skills by the bartenders you meet, or want to take home some of the small pro-duction cachacas you tried at Via Cristina, Mercado Central is where you should head the morning after. In addition to many stalls proffering fresh fruit and herbs, you can find several cachaça shops with a great selection.

Cervejaria BäckerR. Sra. do Carmo, 220 - Olhos D’ÁguaBelo Horizonte +55 31 3288-2958www.cervejariabacker.com.br

This cozy brewery features several excellent beers and ales, including some aged in cachaça barrels.

ADDRESS BOOK

—elyse glickman

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Caipi JângalAlexandre Gledson, Jângalt

Makes 1 drink

1 ½ oz Leblon Cachaça 2 oz coconut water 8 grapes Sparkling wine, to top off

1. Muddle grapes in a Boston shaker.2. Add cachaça and coconut water.3. Shake and strain into a tall glass filled with ice.4. Top up with sparkling wine; garnish with grapes.

COCKTAILS

Ritual OfferingTiago Santos, MeetMe At The Yards

Makes 1 drink

2 oz Leblon Cachaça

½ oz mango puree

¾ oz grapefruit juice

3 small pieces of celery

Apple slices, for garnish

1. In a cocktail shaker, muddle the celery and add the other ingredients. 2. Shake with ice and serve strained over fresh ice. 3. Garnish with apple slices.

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Defy & DefaultTiago Santos, MeetMe At The Yards

Makes 1 drink

1¼ oz Leblon Cachaça

¼ oz beet puree

2 arugula leaves

2 slices lemon peel

¼ oz lima juice (exotic citrus from Brazil; you can also use key limes)

1 oz simple syrup1⁄3 oz lime juice

1. Shake all ingredients and serve strained over crushed ice.

Leblon MuleTony Harion, The Mixing Bar

Makes 1 drink

2 oz Leblon Cachaça

½ oz lime juice

splash ginger ale

Lime wedge, for garnish

Ginger foam (optional)

1. In a copper mug or rocks glass filled with

ice, add cachaça, lime juice and ginger ale. 2. Stir gently and add the ginger foam. 3. Garnish with a lime wedge and ginger foam.

Brazil Nut Syrup

9 oz Brazil nuts

1½ cups water

3 cups sugar

½ teaspoon orange flower water (optional)

½ teaspoon rose water (optional)

1. Put nuts in a plastic bag and break them up a little using the back of a skillet.2. In a saucepan, add the nuts, water and sugar. Boil for five minutes. 3. Strain into a clean bottle, using a cheesecloth. Refrigerate and use within one month.

Blyckman´s StageTiago Santos, MeetMe At The Yards

Makes 1 drink

1¾ oz Leblon Cachaça

¾ oz Aperol

2½ oz orange juice

1¼ oz pear juice

½ oz papaya puree

cinnamon stick, for garnish

1. Shake all ingredients; serve strained, over crushed ice. 2. Garnish with burnt cinnamon stick.

MeetMe Cachaça Bloody Mary Tiago Santos, MeetMe At The Yards

Makes 1 drink

3 pieces celery

1¾ oz Leblon Cachaça

2 oz tomato juice

1 oz lime juice1⁄3 oz simple syrup

½ oz Worcestershire sauce

¼ oz Ardbeg Scotch

2 pinches salt

1 slice ginger

10 drops Tabasco sauce

Charred tomatoes, for garnish (optional)

1. Muddle the celery and shake all the ingre-dients with ice. 2. Serve strained over fresh ice. 3. Garnish with celery and charred tomatoes.

Brew & LoveTony Harion, The Mixing Bar

Makes 1 drink

1½ oz Leblon Cachaça

Top with carbonated cold brew coffee (or iced coffee)

Orange twist, for garnish

1. Fill a tall grass with ice.2. Fill with Leblon Cachaça.3. Top with carbonated cold brew coffee and garnish with an orange twist.

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Cachaça Bramble & Tonic Joao Morandi, DUBMakes 1 drink

1½ oz Leblon Cachaça

¾ oz lime juice, freshly squeezed 

½ oz cardamom simple syrup

splash tonic water

½ oz blackberry syrup, for toppin

Cucumber slice, for garnish

Lemon zest, for garnish

1. Fill a shaker with ice. Add cachaça, lime juice and cardamom syrup.2. Shake and strain into a large wine glass filled with fresh ice. 3. Top with tonic water; drizzle with black-berry syrup.4. Garnish with cucumber slice and lemon zest.

Brazilian Mint Julep Joao Morandi, DUB

Makes 1 drink

2 oz Maison Leblon Reserva Especial

¾ oz sugar cane simple syrup

10 mint leaves

3 mint sprigs, for garnish

1. In a metal mug, add 10 mint leaves, Leblon and sugar cane syrup. 2. Gently muddle all together. Top with crushed ice. Stir. 3. Top with more crushed ice and garnish with 3 mint sprigs.

Soul Bossa NovaJoao Morandi, DUB

Makes 1 drink

1½ oz Leblon Cachaça

¾ oz Martini Bianco

½ oz cardamom syrup

½ oz freshly squeezed lime juice

¾ oz pineapple juice

2 drops flower bitters, for garnish

Lime zest, for garnish

Lemon zest, for garnish

1. Fill a chilled Old Fashioned glass with ice cubes. Add all liquids.2. Stir and garnish with flower bitters, lemon zest and lime zest. 

Brazilian JazzAlexandre Gledson, aka Gledão, at Jângal

Makes 1 drink

2 oz Leblon Cachaça

2 oz Cedilla Açaí Liquor

5 oz graviola (soursop) juice (available at Hispanic and Asian markets)

3½ oz cupuaçu cream (a cousin of cacao, available at Hispanic markets)

1. Add ingredients to a Boston shaker; shake.

Uai TaiTony Harion, The Mixing Bar

Makes 1 drink

2 oz Maison Leblon Reserva Especial (oak-aged cachaça)

¾ oz lime juice

½ oz orange Curaçao or triple sec

½ oz Brazil nut syrup (see below)

¼ oz simple syrup

1. Mix all ingredients and shake with ice.2. Strain over crushed ice3. Garnish with a few sprigs of fresh mint.

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2. Strain into to a pre-chilled Old Fashioned glass full of ice cubes.3. Garnish with berries or citrus wheel. Serve with a straw.

Mario Alberto, or Brazilian Earl Grey Joao Morandi, DUB

Makes 1 drink

1½ oz Leblon Cachaça

1 oz freshly squeezed lime juice

1 oz freshly squeezed orange juice

1 oz freshly squeezed tangerine juice

1 oz simple sugar cane syrup

splash mate tea

1. Add ingredients except tea to a shaker filled with ice cubes.2. Shake well and strain into new ice in a large wine glass. 3. Top gently with the mate tea, pouring over a spoon to create a layered effect.

Apple Bossa Alexandre Gledson, aka Gledão, at Jângal

Makes 1 drink

1 oz Grey Goose La Poire 2 oz Leblon Cachaça 3½ oz apple and cinnamon tea

1. Brew tea in advance and pour into a Boston shaker.2. Add vodka and cachaça and stir.3. Pour into a 5 oz teacup or mug and gar-nish with a cinnamon stick.