The best way that I know to prepare for a forty day period of sobriety, piety and religious observance is to wear feathery costumes, hide your identity with an ornate mask, go nuts in the street and drink as much as you can. The nation of Brazil obviously agrees with me because they created Carnival and made it “the greatest show on Earth” in the streets of Rio. This fantastic party led to the creation of one of my favorite cocktails, the Caipirinha.

The official drink of Carnival, and the national cocktail of Brazil (that’s actually a thing!), is the Caipirhina. This simple drink of lime, sugar and the sugar cane rum Cachaça (pronounced kah-SHAH-sah) is quite simply divine. It’s the perfect summer/hot weather drink and a delicious way to start a party.

Caipirinha - 2oz Cachaça, half a lime (cut into quarters), 2 teaspoons brown sugar

Cachaça is a distilled spirit made from sugar cane juice. It’s in the same family as rum which is distilled from molasses which is just boiled down sugar cane juice. It’s sweet, earthy and tastes strongly of sugar cane (not processed sugar or molasses like many rums). I used a bottle of Novo Fogo silver Cachaça for this drink. The Brazillians have taken to Cachaça (producing 1.3 billion liters annually and exporting only 1% of that) and have several clever Portuguese names for the drink. Some of my personal favorites are:

• água-que-gato-não-bebe which means "water that the cat doesn’t drink"
• champanha-da-terra which means "earth-champagne"
• aquela-que-matou-o-guarda which means "that which kills the guard"
• quebra-jejum which is simply, "breakfast"

The drink is easy to make and forgiving if you screw up. That makes it a great drink for parties because making one is just as easy after you’ve had three or four.

First, cut the lime into small pieces and place in the bottom of a glass or shaker. Add the sugar (more or less to your tasting). Muddle the mixture slowly and carefully. You’re not trying to destroy the lime and crush the peel into little bits, you’re trying to slowly release the juices without eviscerating the peel and releasing the bitter elements in the rind and pith. Then, add the Cachaça and fill with ice. Give it a good shake and pour the whole thing, ice and all, into the original glass.

Enjoy this drink before Lent starts… the feathers and mask are optional.

If you’re in Seattle, you can stop by Rumba on Thursday 2/27 at 7pm for their Carnival celebration which features a Brazillian menu, plenty of great drinks with cachaça and live Brazillian music. You can grab a Caipirinha, a pineapple full of grilled shrimp, and maybe even catch up with your favorite Seattle cocktail blogger.

Cheers!