Sep.13, 2011
Cachaça Day in Brazil
When the first sugarcane plants were introduced in Brazil by Portuguese colonizers in the early 16th century, brought from Madeira Island, the creation of a genuinely Brazilian drink would soon follow.
Yet, though the origins of cachaça date back to the Sugarcane Cycle (16th to 18th century) and the manufacturing processes taking place at the oldest engenhos, or sugarcane plantations and mills; though production is intrinsically intertwined with Brazil history and the formation of a national identity, cachaça tourism has only recently begun to take shape as a trend in Brazil travel.
The potential for development is enormous - according to IBRAC, the Brazilian Cachaça Institute (www.ibrac.net), Brazil has 40,000 cachaça producers, 99% of them micro-companies. Many of those are located in the same regions where African and Brazil-born slaves first distilled the drink at sugar mills - and developed a product which, tragically, would be used in triangular trade.
A deeper contact with Brazil's past, particularly its black history, and journeys through scenic destinations, such as Paraty, the Paraiba River Valley or the colonial towns of Minas Gerais, are some of the pluses of cachaça tourism besides the discovery of the drink's variegated flavors and textures.
Superb regional culinary is often part of the experience; some of the distilleries are on farms which also have restaurants, and most cachaçarias specialize in local dishes as well.
In view of the importance of cachaça in Brazil culture and economy - for example, in the generation of 600,000 jobs and exports to over 50 countries - IBRAC initiated a campaign to make September 13 National Cachaça Day. A bill sponsored by a Santa Catarina representative awaits voting in the Chamber of Deputies.
September 13 was chosen because on that day in 1661, an uprising put an end to a Portuguese royal decree which prohibited the production of the drink in the colony.
Trade shows such as Expocachaça play an important role in related business travel. In 2011, for the first time in its 15-year history, the Belo Horizonte event also had a São Paulo edition.
Great Cachaça Tours in Brazil
Most cachaça tours in Brazil are still do-it-yourself. Ask locally about agencies which might include these attractions on their tours.
- Cachaçatur in Belo Horizonte
This recommended tour of bars, restaurants, stores and distilleries with a focus on handcrafted Minas Gerais was cachaça was launched on Sep.13, 2010. One of its highlights is Vale Verde Ecological Park, a distillery and ecopark in the BH Metroplex.
Cachaçatur
- Coffee, Cachaça and Chorinho
An annual, music-wrapped fall tour of alambiques and historic coffee farms in Rio de Janeiro's Coffee Valley.
- Vale Verde Parque Ecológico
An ecopark and distillery near Belo Horizonte.
- Cachaça Maria Izabel
Visit a distillery in Paraty, one of Brazil's historic cachaça-producing regions.
