Instead of a typical selection of just a few cachaças, Empório Sagarana sports a menu of dozens, many with tasting notes. It also begins with a manifesto of what is good cachaça, which Mr. Jannuzzi helped write. Moreover, a small avant-garde of producers has recently started highlighting different varieties of sugar cane as well as releasing vintage cachaças, Mr. Jannuzzi said. I like to put tradition in typical Brazilian cocktails,” he said. In working with cachaça, Mr. Amereno said, he also must confront perceptions by Brazilians that the spirit, and the cocktails traditionally made from it, are low-quality and unsophisticated.

Source: New York Times September 28, 2017 09:00 UTC