62-64 Cachac?aTSFSjpps:Layout 1 24/10/08 09:37 Page 64
WHITE SPIRITS: CACHACA
CACHACA SALES
ON THE UP: PERUVIAN PISCO
IN GENERAL ARE
UIforwardBuoyed by a positive reception at May’s Distil in London, Pisco is
another South American spirit that is growing in popularity
BEING DRIVEN BY
in new markets, including the UK. Although Chile also
makes a Pisco, it is the Peruvian Pisco that is really
THE PREMIUM
coming to the fore. Put simply, it is a grape brandy with a
END
denomination of origin called Pisco, distilled from freshly
fermented grape must in stills that do not rectify the final
product. Johnny Schuller is a respected and authoritative voice
on the subject. A restaurant owner from Peru, he has written two
Pisco books and works for the Peruvian government to promote the drink.
“We are witnessing the rebirth of Pisco,” he says. “In the last 10 to 12
years it has been rediscovered.” The name Pisco may originate from an old Incan Quechua word, ‘Pisscu’,
unit for Germana is a copper pot which means flying bird.
still. This is different from industrial In Peru, seven varieties of grape are permitted for production: Quebranta, Mollar and Negre Corriente (non-
cachaças, which are produced by aromatic) and Italia (a table grape), Moscatel, Torontel and Albilla (aromatic). These grapes go into making the
medium-sized and large mills, as four recognised styles of Pisco: Puro non-aromatic and Puro aromatic (both one grape), Pisco Acholada (a blend)
they use column stills to process and Mosto Verde (green must). “There are two categories to consider,” continues Schuller. “Spirits made from wine
the fermented sugarcane juice. and spirits made from grape. Like Cognac and Armagnac, Pisco is made from wine. It can be likened to an un-
“Germana’s market is aged, un-wooded brandy.” The abv of Pisco lies between 38% and 48%. “It is like adding pure grape to a cocktail,”
predominantly on-trade style bars continues Schuller.
and select off-trade outlets,” Under DO regulations, the addition of sugar, water, yeast or anything else that will alter the flavour, is prohibited in
continues Woods. “It is largely used Peruvian Pisco. It is a natural product made from the first grape pressing, with an average of 8kg used per litre. The
in cocktails, like Caipirinhas and regulations also stipulate that distillation must be in a discontinuous still and the product should be distilled to
the Brazilian citrus punch, but as it bottle proof.
is aged in oak barrels, it can also Joseph Woods from Amathus expands on some of the brands that are available: “La Diablada and Macchu Pisco
be enjoyed pure.” are doing very well in the marketplace – predominantly on-trade and a few specialist retail outlets, in particular for
It would appear that various cocktails like Pisco Sour and Pisco Punch. We are also importing new Pisco brands into the UK including 1615 de
aspects are converging to make Gran Terruño, Payet, Qollqe, and the ultra-premium Inquebrantable.”
cachaça the next big thing in the Pisco is regarded as being very different to what is currently widely available, and as we have seen with cachaça,
spirits world. With a growing, the new wave of cocktail enthusiasm could well drive sales. “Pisco is a new, different and particular option,” says
global interest in cocktails for Schuller, “but people will have to find out why. In Peru, there are 500 different producers, and it is handcrafted, not
both on-trade and at-home industrial. The 17th national championships were held this year and competition was fierce.”
consumption, a new and versatile There were 303 samples in these championships, and qualifiers first had to go through five regional finals. There
base could well be the order of the were 11 categories in total, and the minimum cut-off mark was 85 out of 100. “There are three different Pisco
day. The brands are embarking on concepts for consumption today,” continues Schuller. “Pisco Sour, new cocktails with Pisco, like the Pisco Cup or the
a programme of education, and Pisco Smash, and drinking Pisco neat as a digestif.”
alongside the big push behind
Sagatiba, the category as a whole
should receive much wider
recognition and understanding in
the near future. Caipirinhas may
have driven the growth so far, but
it is quite unlikely that everyone
who has consumed this Brazilian
cocktail will know that it has
cachaça at its heart. That will soon
change, and once the connection
of the spirit and a favoured drink is
cemented in people’s minds it is
not such a huge step to a much
wider appreciation of cachaça’s
provenance and versatility. db
64
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100