Leblon Cachaa

During the 17th century, the Madeira archipelago (situated just 200 miles north of the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa) was a major exporter of sugar and sugar cane to much of Portugal and Western Europe. As Algerian pirates began raiding European cargo ships in the late 18th century, however, and Napoleon plunged Europe into a series of wars beginning in 1803, the waters off the coast of the Madeira archipelago became too dangerous to navigate. As a result, the production of sugar cane, as well as cachaa a spirit distilled from sugar cane shifted from Madeira to Brazil. Since then, cachaa has become the most popular spirit in Brazil and the third most-popular spirit in the world.Leblon Cachaa is made exclusively from sugar cane harvested in Minas Gerais region of Brazil. The sugar cane grows at an altitude of over 1,000 feet, where the lower atmospheric pressure and cooler temperatures results in canes that are incredibly sweet and flavorful. Once the sugar cane stalks have reached their peak of maturity, they are hand-harvested by expert farmers and lightly pressed in order to extract only the sweetest juices of the stalk. The extracted sugarcane juice is then fermented by Gilles Merlet, Leblons Master Distiller. "We use a proprietary fermentation process that lasts 15 hours," says Merlet, "in order to produce a cachaa with bolder flavors." Following fermentation, the cachaa is single-distilled through a copper alambique still and then matured for up to six months in casks that were previously used to mature cognac.The cognac casks mellow the edges of the raw cachaa, and provide an aroma of pears, molasses and dried citrus. The aroma fades into notes of sweet citrus, lime, vanilla and spices, which are complemented by an undertone of toffee and cream. The finish is long and warming, with a burst of tropical fruits.Leblon Cachaa earned the Double Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013, where it was named the "Best Cachaa." In addition, the cachaa earned a score of 92 points from the Beverage Testing Institute.Pick up a bottle today!