The white of the lemon doesn't make the caipirinha bitter!

Caipirinha, myths and truths: does the white part of the lemon make Caipirinha bitter?

Mauricio Maia, cachaça specialist, answers us and also talks about other misunderstandings that arise when preparing the most Brazilian of cocktails.

Does the white part of the lemon make Caipirinha bitter?

What is the classic Caipirinha recipe?

The Caipirinha recipe is protected by Decree No. 6.871, of 2009:

“…with an alcohol content of fifteen to thirty-six percent in volume, at twenty degrees Celsius, made with cachaça, lemon and sugar, it could be called caipirinha (a typical Brazilian drink), with the addition of water allowed to standardize the alcohol and additive content”.

The classic Caipirinha recipe, as stated in the IBA (International Bartenders Association) is as follows:

50 ml of cachaça
tahitian lemon
2 teaspoons of sugar

The official preparation is to place the lemon and sugar in an Old Fashion style glass and macerate. Fill the glass with ice and then cachaça. In this way, the drink is considered an assembled cocktail – rather than shaken, stirred or mixed.

So Caipirinha is just with lemon?

Any bar in the world where you order a Daiquiri will serve you with rum and lemon – the spirit or fruit is never replaced. This brings consistency and helps promote the cocktail. We must do the same with our classic Caipirinha recipe and promote its original recipe, with Tahiti lemon and cachaça, ingredients even established by legislation. For cocktails with other fruits, the name is suggested: caipifruta. And if cachaça is replaced by vodka, the cocktail should be called Caipiroska; if rum is used it becomes Caipiríssima.

Cachaça is a versatile distillate that pairs very well with citrus fruits. But the classic Caipirinha recipe is with Tahiti lime.

Does this mean that the lemon pith does not make the Caipirinha bitter?

Of course not bitter. That part is just fiber. If you put it in your mouth you will notice that it is even weaker and has a much more delicate flavor than the whole fruit. The problem is that the fiber increases the need to use force when macerating the lemon, which makes it really bitter. The citrus peel is what makes it bitter. If you remove the core of the fruit and mash it like mashed potatoes, it will taste just as bitter.

Can the traditional Caipirinha recipe only be made with cachaça without going through wood?

This is one of the biggest nonsense I've ever heard. Aged cachaça is very useful when making a drink. Of course, you need to observe the characteristics of the wood. For example, if amburana and American oak add very sweet characteristics to the liquid, I will prepare a caipirinha with less sugar. If I use a version of marvada that is already acidic, I add less lemon to my drink and so on.