Leblon Cachaca

40% ABV, 750 ml

"This cachaça has a faint yellowish tinge and an aroma that tilts both funky and sweet, suggesting ripe banana plus hints of coconut and lychee. Vanilla sweetness leads the robust palate, finishing with plenty of ripe fruit tapering off to cinnamon and spearmint on the exhale. " Wine Enthusiast 92 Points

Leblon is produced at its own vertically integrated distillery in the fertile cachaça-producing Minas Gerais region of Brazil. The distillery is called Maison Leblon, and Gilles Merlet, along with Carlos Oliveira, serves as master distiller. Merlet approaches the distillation of Leblon Cachaça as if it were a fine wine. The cane is hand-harvested from Leblon's nearby fields and quickly delivered to the Maison for pressing. The juice is fermented for 20 to 24 hours before being transferred into the Alambique copper pot stills for single-batch distillation. The distillate is then rested up to 6 months in Vintage XO Cognac Casks from France. The various batches are then master blended, and the final batch is gently filtered and bottled in glass. Since Leblon Cachaça is distilled in Alambique copper pot stills in smaller batches and not in faster, cheaper column stills, it is classified as an artisanal cachaça. Leblon is certified by the Instituto Mineiro de Agropecuária as an artisanal Cachaça de Alambique.