Master Distiller Gilles Merlet creates Leblon Cachaça in Patos de Minas, in Minas Gerais, Brazil from freshly crushed sugar cane, which is then slightly aged in French Cognac casks to smooth and round out its flavor without taking away the heart and soul of this delectable Brazilian spirit.

From Sugar Cane to Brazil's Native Spirit:

Master Distiller Gilles Merlet creates the ultra-premium Leblon Cachaça (pronounced kuh-shah-suh), at the state-of-the-art Maison Leblon distillery in Patos de Minas, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, a fertile area in the southeastern part of Brazil which is blessed with an excellent microclimate and high altitude which produces taller and juicier sugar cane.

Each step of the process in making Leblon Cachaça is carefully monitored that begins with selecting the sugar cane for harvesting. Once selected, the sugar cane is cut by hand using a machete, with the top and bottom of the stalk cut off leaving only the center of the stalk, or heart, which is then delivered to the distillery and is pressed within three hours.

The next stage is fermentation using proprietary yeasts derived from the sugar cane that converts the sugars to alcohol molecules. After approximately 15 hours, they transfer the "must" to artisanal copper alambique pot stills for small-patch distillation. Master Distiller Gilles Merlet then cuts the "head" and "tail" from the batch, leaving only the best part, the heart.

What makes Leblon Cachaça different from other cachaças, is that Leblon Cachaça uses XO Cognac casks to "rest" it for up to six months to smooth and round out the flavors, while retaining the essence of what makes this spirit special. Master Distiller Gilles Merlet then carefully blends the batches to create the unique flavor and taste that has comes to signify Leblon Cachaça, organically triple-filters it, and then attractively packages it in a bottle with one of the icons of Rio de Janeiro on it, the "Dois Irmãos" (two brothers) mountains. The result is Leblon Cachaça, 40% alcohol, a clean, clear spirit that is perfect in a wide variety of cocktails.

Tasting Notes: Fresh, herbaceous, slightly sweet notes of sugar cane, and hint of citrus on the nose, with a long lasting, sweet and slightly peppery, smooth finish on the palate.

To showcase the versatility of Leblon Cachaça, Luxury Experience Mixologists Debra C. Argen and Edward F. Nesta created a diverse selection of cocktail and culinary recipes to tempt your palate.

Leblon Cachaça Cocktail and Culinary Menu
All Recipes created by Luxury Experience Mixologists
Debra C. Argen and Edward F. Nesta

The Cocktail Recipes (Batidas)

Luxury Experience Beach House Bellini
Luxury Experience Praia
Luxury Experience Caipirinha
Luxury Experience MG 
Luxury Experience Hammock Time

The Culinary Recipes (Comidas

Luxury Experience Caipirinha Sorbet with Leblon Cachaça Grilled Pineapple
Luxury Experience Cachaça Candy
Luxury Experience "Lush-ous" Brigadeiro

The Cocktail Recipes (Batidas)

Batidas (bah-chee-duhs) is the Portuguese word for cocktails, a must for our celebratory parties with family and friends. Wonderful times spent in Brazil were the inspiration for the batidas.

Luxury Experience Beach House Bellini

Summer is a time to relax and enjoy cocktails and churrascaria (pronounced sure-hass-car-rhia) (barbecue) with friends out on the deck or lazing about on the beach, which was the inspiration for Luxury Experience Beach House Bellini something that we enjoy creating whether we are in Brazil at the beach, or at our stateside beach house. This is a perfect summertime cocktail that captures the spirit of Brazil using Leblon Cachaça, champagne, and guava juice (known as goiaba in Brazil), which is a very popular juice in Brazil.

We like to make the cocktail and place it in the freezer for 45 minutes, and have it ready to serve guests when they arrive to set the mood for the party. Beach House Bellini is a great cocktail to make in large batches and keep on hand in the freezer to serve to friends who stop by your "beach house." You can also make and serve the cocktail immediately.

Luxury Experience Beach House Bellini
Yield:               1 Cocktail
Glass Used:     Champagne Flute

Cocktail Ingredients:

Method for the Cocktail: Pour ingredients into a chilled champagne flute, or if time allows, place the cocktail in the freezer for 45 minutes before serving.

Luxury Experience Praia (pronounced pry-ah, is the Portuguese word for beach) takes it inspiration from the classic cocktails, the Caipirinha,  and the Mojito, made with white rum, sugar, muddled mint leaves, and sparkling water.

Praia is our take on these two classic cocktails and combines Leblon Cachaça, fresh lemon juice, water, and mint simple syrup, and is served over mint ice cubes for a refreshing and visually appealing cocktail.

Luxury Experience Praia
Yield:               1 Cocktail
Glass Used:     Rocks Glass

Cocktail Ingredients:

Mint Simple Syrup Ingredients

Method for the Mint Simple Syrup: Add the water and sugar to a saucepan, bring the water to a boil, and then simmer over low heat to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat, add mint add cover. Let cool for an hour. Strain mixture into a glass jar, discard mint leaves, and refrigerate the syrup until needed. Make ahead and keep on hand to use in cocktails or use as a glaze for fruit, fish, poultry, or pork.

Method for the Mint Ice Cubes: Place 1 mint leaf in each section of an ice cube tray. Add a little water and freeze until just set to hold leaf in place, then fill with additional water to top off and freeze.

Method for the Cocktail: Add ingredients to a shaker with plain ice cubes, briefly shake. Strain into a rocks glass filled with the mint ice cubes. Garnish with a slice of lemon and a small mint sprig.

Luxury Experience Classic Caipirinha

The Caipirinha is the most famous of the Brazilian cocktails. It is an integral part of the culture and is made with fresh limes muddled with sugar, and shaken with Leblon Cachaça and ice, and then strained into a rocks glass filled with ice for a deliciously refreshing cocktail.

Cocktail Ingredients:

Method: In a large mixing glass of a shaker, muddle the lime cubes with the sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Add Leblon Cachaça, 4 ice cubes, and shake hard until the ice is fully incorporated into the drink. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice.

Luxury Experience MG

The inspiration for Luxury Experience MG was the lush green mountainous area of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, home of Leblon Cachaça, and a region where we like to rappel with our friends.

Luxury Experience MG combines Leblon Cachaça, celery juice, cilantro, lime juice, and honey water for an attractive, balanced cocktail.

Luxury Experience MG
Yield:             1 Cocktail
Glass Used:       Martini Glass

Cocktail Ingredients:

Celery Juice Method: Juice 2 stalks of celery and the cilantro leaves in a juicer. If you do not have a juicer, you may use a blender. Process 1 stalk celery with 0.25-cup water. Strain juice and discard pulp. Blend the juice with the cilantro leaves.

Method for the Cocktail: Chill a Martini glass and set aside. Add all ingredients to a large metal shaker and shake hard. Strain into the Martini glass and garnish with the celery stalk.

Luxury Experience Hammock Time made with Leblon Cachaça, Cedilla Liqueur de Açai, sweetened condensed milk, fresh blackberries, and lime juice is a smooth beauty to sip while relaxing in a hammock. Sip and swing away.

Luxury Experience Hammock Time
Yield:               1 Cocktail
Glass Used:     Rock's Glass

Cocktail Ingredients:

Method for the Cocktail: Place ingredients and ice in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour cocktail through a strainer to remove any blackberry seeds into an ice filled glass. Garnish with a blackberry rolled in sugar.

The Culinary Recipes (Comidas)

Comidas (pronounced come-me-duhs) is the plural of the Portuguese word for food, and as our spirits philosophy is "behind the bar and in the kitchen," of course we had to create a few tempting culinary recipes using Leblon Cachaça.

Luxury Experience Caipirinha Sorbet with Leblon Cachaça Grilled Pineapple is a delicious, easy, make-ahead dessert to serve at dinner parties, which provides you with more time to relax and enjoy your guests.

Luxury Experience Caipirinha Sorbet

Ingredients:

Method: In a blender, process the lime zest and the sugar until zest is very fine, about 3 minutes. Add 6 ounces of water and liquefy the mixture. Strain mixture though a fine sieve into a saucepan, and discard zest.

Add ¼ cup of sugar to the mixture and simmer for 3 minutes to completely dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat. Add 1-ounce lime juice and 13 ounces of water. Let mixture cool over an ice water bath. Add 4 ounces of Leblon Cachaça. Pour mixture into an airtight container and place in the freezer and freeze overnight. Remove the sorbet from container, and process it in a food processor until light and smooth. Return to container and freeze until ready to serve.

Leblon Cachaça Grilled Pineapple

Ingredients:

Method: Heat a non-stick pan over medium high heat. Add pineapple slices, 1 per person, and grill until golden. Turn over and grill the other side. Add diced pineapple and grill until golden, about 1 minute. Add 0.25 ounce of Leblon Cachaça and ignite to flambé taking care to step away from the stove. Flames will self extinguish. Note: Do not use an updraft or fan when flambéing. Add 0.25 ounce of the mint simple syrup over the pineapple, and stir until liquid evaporates. Chill pineapple slices and diced pineapple until serving.

Presentation: Place 1 pineapple slice on a plate, add a scoop of the Caipirinha sorbet, add the diced pineapple to either side of the sorbet on the plate, grate fresh lime zest over the plate, garnish with mint leaves (optional) and serve.

Luxury Experience Cachaça Candy

Several years ago, we were exploring the colonial town of Tiradentes, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil with our friends Gilberto and Regina Sacilotti, and tried what we thought was a delectable "candy." It turned out that the candy was actually made with gelatin and cachaça. We returned to the beach house in Itamambuca, Brazil and started playing in the kitchen to replicate that tasty recipe; this version comes close to what we remember; eat the candy in small portions.

Ingredients:

Method: In a bowl, mix the flavored gelatin with boiling water and stir to dissolve. Let cool for 2 minutes. Add the Leblon Cachaça and stir. Pour into a 5" x 9" loaf pan and set in the refrigerator overnight until very firm. Cut into small squares.

Luxury Experience "Lush-ous" Brigadeiro

A Brazilian party would not be complete without "brigadeiro" (pronounced brig-ah-dare-oh), which is a decadent chocolate fudge-like candy. Our version incorporates Leblon Cachaça into this "Adults Only" recipe.

Luxury Experience "Lush-ous" Brigadeiro
Yield:   12 Candies

Ingredients:

Method: In a medium pan, add the sweetened condensed milk, butter, cocoa and milk, and stir well to combine. Cook over medium heat stirring with a long handled wooden spoon throughout until the mixture starts to thicken approximately 10 minutes, and then add the Leblon Cachaça. Continue stirring while cooking until the chocolate mixture comes away from the sides of the pan and starts to look dry approximately 13 minutes.

Pour in a bowl and let cool. When completely cool, butter your hands, use a teaspoon amount of chocolate and roll into a ball, and then roll the ball in the chocolate sprinkles. Complete the process until all of the chocolate is used. Put the candy in paper cups, and set in the refrigerator until ready to eat.

With Luxury Experience's cocktail and culinary recipes, all you need to do is fire up your grill, grab a few Brazilian CDs, invite some friends over, and have yourself a party!

Regarding Leblon Cachaça, please visit the website: www.LeblonCachaca.com,  or following them on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LeblonCachaca or at Luxury Experience Facebook page: www.Facebook.com/LuxuryExperience.

Read about Cedilla Liqueur de Acai and get the recipes in the Liquor Cabinet section. For more information on Cedilla Liqueur de Acai, please visit the website: www.Cedilla.com.br or their Facebook page: www.Facebook.com/CedillaLiqueur.

Leblon Cachaça
41 West 25th Street, 5th Floor
New York, New York 10010
United States
Telephone:       +1-212-741-2675
Website:           www.Leblon.com
Facebook:         www.Facebook.com/LeblonCachaca

© June 2012. Luxury Experience. www.LuxuryExperience.com. All rights reserved.