Yaguara Cachaca Ouro came to UK shores last year.  It seems the Brazilian “rum” is beginning to catch on.  Cachaca brands are becoming more commonplace at UK Rum Festivals and trade shows. Cachaca once again highlights the diversity in Sugar Cane Spirits.

Yaguara Cachaca Ouro is an aged Cachaca. The producers note it is small batch artisinal Cachaca.  Produced in Copper Pot Stills.  They have quite an impressive and informative website.  They have been producing Cachaca for 5 generations. So they are not a new company but their products are new to the UK.

The first of their products to hit the UK was Yaguara Cachaca Ouro.  However, The Whisky Exchange now stock all their of the Cachaca’s.  A 70cl bottle will set you back £33.75.  It is bottled at 42% ABV.  A lot of Cachaca is bottled at 38% ABV so this is a little different in that respect.

Yaguara Ouro comes in a tall this slightly rounded bottle with a good quality wax sealed cork stopper.  The Cachaca is a blend of spirit aged in Cabrueva, Amburana and American Oak.  If the first two woods are unfamiliar to you – that is probably because they are native American woods.  The use of such woods is what makes Cachaca different to rum.

For those of you who aren’t aware Cachaca is produced from Sugar Cane Juice rather than syrup or molasses.  It is similar to Rhum Agricole.  It is often rested in steel vats.  Most white Cachaca is under a year old.  Like Rhum Agricole the amount of ageing required before it is classed as “aged” is often much lower than you might find with molasses based rums.  This is an aged Cachaca but I don’t think any of the distillates used are more than 4 years old.

Yaguara Ouro is a white wine colour – almost clear with just a tinge of yellow.  Unless you are very familiar with aged Cachaca then you will initially find the nose quite odd.  It is a mix between a rhum agricole and something like tequila or mezcal.

The native Brazilian woods used to aged most Cachaca give it a very different and very distinct aroma.  Yaguara Ouro uses both Cabrueva and Amburana alongside more traditional (in rum at least) American oak barrels.

The resulting nose is much more floral than an Rhum Agricole and it is at the same time still quite medicinal.  Kind of like Pot Pourri steeped in Nail Varnish.  The “woody” notes smell a little like freshly sawn wood – a touch of sawdust.  It reminds me a little of Clairin – sweet yet menacing.  It’s quite a complex nose and quite difficult to pin down.

Sipped Yaguara Ouro is much more mellow than the nose suggests.  It has a really nice smoky flavour and a lovely flowery note.  Really different and its really piqued my interest in aged Cachaca.

It is initially fairly sweet with some green apple and a touch of sugar syrup.  This gives way to a light woodiness and an almost florally infused smokiness which is very different to the harsh mass produced industrial White Cachaca I have tried previously.

The finish isn’t overly long but it is nice and dries out nicely to a smoky slightly oaky conclusion.

It is quite a delicate spirit once introduced to mixers.  Coke is a definite no-no – it works nicely in a Ti Punch though.  To be honest this cachaca is so interesting it seems a shame to mix it.

Whilst Cachaca is essentially rum by another name Yaguara does show that it does indeed need its own identity.  The native woods used give this spirit such a distinct flavour that it would actually flummox people if it were presented to them as rum.

I’ve really enjoyed this spirit.  It is a million miles away from some of the cheaper industrial White Cachaca I have tried.  It’s definitely worth trying out if you are looking for something different.

I think personally it is a good thing to keep a bit of variety in your spirit cabinet.  This certainly offers that.

This offers a nice, gentle change of pace.  It’s quite complex and floral but not overly challenging.  It’s fairly delicate in comparison to heavier rum styles.

A really decent sip.