Abelha Organic Silver Cachaca Despite attempts by some of the biggest players in the Drinks Industry cachaca remains very much a domestic product. There are thousands of cachaca brands available in Brasil. Only a very small portion of those brands even see the light of day outside Brasil.

There are a few brands which are available in Europe but they are often brands that are not available in Brasil. In recent years we have seen achaca available from the likes of Avua, Yaguara and Novo Fogo. Products geared up for a European and US audience. By geared up I mean they are put in sleek elegant bottles. Given a more “Premium” appearance than some of the cachaca you will find in Brasil. I’m sure you will have noticed just how rustic some of the cachaca I have reviewed over the past couple of years is, in terms of appearance.

However, fortunately these products have rarely meant that quality has been sacrificed. Abelha Organic Cachaca is available in Gold and Silver expressions. In all honesty whilst the Silver has been widely available here in the UK, I have not seen the Gold anywhere near as often. Marks and Spencer were at one point stocking this Silver cachaca.

Abelha is actually a UK based company. In 2007 they first visited Brasil in the hope of setting up a cachaca brand which would be available in the UK and Europe. It was in the small town of Rio de Contas, Bahia state where they were introduced to Marcos Vaccaro who owned a small “fazenda” but had a history in cachaca making in Southern Brasil.

Abelha was the first cachaca to be certified as Organic in Brasil. Everything from planting the sugar cane to bottling the cachaca is done at the “fazenda”. Abelha Organic Silver Cachaca is produced in small batches on Copper Pot Stills. It is then rested for 6 months in stainless steel vats before being bottled.

The cachaca I am reviewing today is Abelha Organic Silver Cachaca, which is bottled at 39% ABV. If you visit their, very modern looking website you will notice that this cachaca is noted as being called Prata and bottled at 40% ABV. I have not seen this for sale in the UK as yet. Indeed if you do look to buy this product you will find the 39% Silver version. Expect to pay around £25 for a 70cl bottle of this cachaca.

Presentation wise as touched upon already this is aimed at the UK/European market so it has to look premium. You may also find when you look around for this cachaca that it has been available in a Bee House shaped box with a muddler and cocktail book. Presentation wise its very nice and on trend.

So lets now move onto the fun part.

In the glass we have, as expected a crystal clear liquid. No signs of any colour at all.

Abelha Organic Silver Cachaca has a nice fruity nose. Lots of green apple and ripe white grape. There is a sweet note of sugar cane and icing sugar. It’s really fresh and vibrant. At an ABV of 39% it isn’t going to knock anyones socks off but it has a quite a big fruity well balanced aroma.

It’s not the most complex nose in the world but was is there is very pleasant.

As a sipper it is a little less rewarding. It’s got a fair amount of burn. It is much less sweet than I was expecting with quite a high concentration of alcohol notes – it’s a little bitter taken neat.

It doesn’t really do all the much as a sipper it’s just a bit boozy and a bit grassy and the overall experience is pretty short. There isn’t much of a finish to speak about or any really development as you sip. You get a bit of a burn then some brief notes of sugar cane. A touch of dark fruits but it isn’t very long lasting.

That said of course this isn’t really something geared towards being a sipper it is more of a mixer.

As a mixer Abelha Organic Silver Cachaca does a decent job in a Caiprinha or a Ti Punch. As with most cachaca it works best with lighter mixers. Rather than things like cola and ginger beer.

It’s refreshing and enjoyable with lemon and lime. It works nicely and deliver a decent amount of flavour to the drinks. More of the notes on the nose come out when you mix it and the flavour seems to last much longer than when you try to sip this cachaca.

As a readily available cachaca here in the UK it is certainly something worth trying. It’s not as harsh as some of the younger “Industrial” cachacas that are available from the likes of Ypioca and Velho Barreiro. It’s also a lot better than BemBom. Which is best avoided.

This is a good solid entry level white/silver cachaca.