The Caipirinha recipe
for your table
Put the lime wedges and sugar in a sturdy glass.
Muddle: press the lime firmly to release the juice and oils.
Fill the glass with crushed ice and pour the cachaça over it.
Stir firmly from bottom to top and serve with a short straw.
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The story
The Caipirinha ('little country girl' in Portuguese) originated around 1918 in the state of São Paulo, probably as a home remedy for the Spanish flu made with lime, garlic and honey. The garlic disappeared, sugar and plenty of ice took its place, and the medicine became a party drink. Cachaça, distilled from fresh sugarcane juice rather than molasses like rum, is South America's oldest spirit. With the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the Rio Olympics, the rest of the world finally discovered en masse what Brazil had known for a century.
The right glass
The Caipirinha is made in the glass, so you need a low, thick-walled tumbler that can withstand muddling. Choose a model from 32 to 37 cl with a heavy base, so you can press limes into it without worry. The wide opening makes stirring easy and lets the green fruit stand out beautifully. You can also use this type of glass for your Old Fashioned or whisky on the rocks. For a thick-walled glass that can withstand a muddler, take a look at our old fashioned glasses.
RCR Adagio Tumbler 35 cl (6 pieces)
Eclat Longchamp Tumbler 32 cl (6 pieces)
Both sets together € 62,90.
The right tools
For a Caipirinha, besides the glass, you’ll need a muddler, a bar spoon for stirring, a jigger for precise measuring, large ice cubes, and glass straws. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you’ll find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glassware set (our choice 01) + 5 bar tools together € 111,70.
Variations & twists
With vodka, it’s called a Caipiroska; with sake, a Caipisake; but cachaça remains the soul. Try muddling strawberries, passion fruit, or kiwi into it: in Brazil, the fruit caipirinha ('caipifruta') is at least as popular as the original. Brown cane sugar gives it a deeper, almost caramel-like character. With fresh passion fruit, you can make a Passion Fruit Caipirinha, and for a creamy cachaça drink, there’s the Batida de Coco. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Servingtip
Roll the lime firmly across the counter before cutting it: this releases more juice. No cachaça at home? With vodka, it's called a Caipiroska. Also delicious, but not quite the same party.
Good to know
Muddling: how to do it properly
Cut the lime into eight wedges and remove the white pith, as that is the source of the bitter flavor. Put the wedges in a thick-walled glass with two teaspoons of cane sugar and press them with a muddler: twist and press, don't mash. The sugar acts as an abrasive on the peel and extracts the oil, and that oil is precisely what makes the difference between lemonade and a real Caipirinha. Pressing five or six times is enough. If you continue until the peels break apart, the bitter pith will be released after all.
Caipirinha or Mojito
Both are fresh, green and built around lime, but the base differs fundamentally. Cachaça is distilled from freshly pressed sugarcane juice, which gives it a grassy, slightly wild flavor; rum comes from molasses, a by-product of sugar production, and is rounder and sweeter. On top of that, the Mojito has mint and sparkling water, making it long and refreshing, while the Caipirinha remains short and concentrated: 6 cl of cachaça in a glass full of crushed ice, nothing else. That immediately explains the difference in strength between the two.
Caipiroska and other substitutes
No cachaça at home? Vodka is the usual substitute, in which case the cocktail is called a Caipiroska: more neutral, cleaner and without that grassy undertone. With sake, you make a Caipisake, which is softer and slightly rice-sweet. White rum works too, although that moves you toward a Mojito without mint. The main thing to know is that cachaça is the reason this cocktail tastes the way it does, and that you can get a bottle for as little as around twenty euros. Choose a cachaça prata, unaged and clear; the aged golden bottles are better enjoyed neat.
How much alcohol does it contain
It contains 6 cl of cachaça, usually between 38 and 48 percent ABV, and otherwise only lime, sugar and ice. Once the crushed ice melts, the drink in the glass ends up at roughly 15 to 20 percent ABV, about twice as strong as a glass of wine and considerably stronger than a Mojito, which stays below 10 percent because of the sparkling water. Its fresh flavor masks that, which is why this cocktail is so often underestimated. If you want it lighter, top the glass up with 4 cl of sparkling water after stirring.
Brazilian caipirinha drink in brief
What makes this drink Brazilian is the cachaça: that name may only appear on the bottle if the spirit comes from Brazil and is distilled from freshly pressed sugarcane juice. The Caipirinha cocktail is therefore not a variation on something else, but has its own origin and its own flavor. If you make caipirinhas for a group, muddle each glass individually rather than in one large jug: the lime oil evaporates, and wedges left in the drink for too long gradually add a bitter undertone.
With rum instead of cachaça
You often see the term caipirinha rum online, but the bottle says cachaça: both come from sugarcane, but cachaça is distilled from fresh juice, while rum is usually made from molasses. If you choose white rum anyway, that version is called a Caipirissima. Use a dry, unaged rum, not spiced rum, because its vanilla and cinnamon clash with the lime oil. A caipirinha cocktail comes closest to the original with a rum that contributes little sweetness of its own.
Frequently asked questions
What is in a Caipirinha?
A Caipirinha consists of 6 cl of cachaça, one whole lime cut into eight wedges and two teaspoons of cane sugar, topped up with crushed ice. That's all there is to it. First muddle the lime and sugar in the glass, releasing both the juice and the oil from the peel.
What is the difference between a Mojito and a Caipirinha?
The base spirit and the mint. A Mojito is made with white rum, mint and sparkling water, while a Caipirinha is made with cachaça, lime and cane sugar, without mint and without bubbles. Cachaça is distilled from fresh sugarcane juice and rum from molasses, which gives the Caipirinha a grassier and more direct taste.
What is the alcohol percentage of a Caipirinha?
A Caipirinha ends up at roughly 15 to 20 percent alcohol in the glass. It contains 6 cl of cachaça, typically 38 to 48 percent ABV, and only lime, sugar and melting ice to dilute it. That makes it one of the stronger cocktails, despite its fresh taste.
What is a substitute for cachaça in a Caipirinha?
Vodka is the usual substitute; the cocktail is then called a Caipiroska. With sake, you make a Caipisake. Both work, but cachaça provides the grassy depth that characterizes the original. Always muddle in a thick-walled glass; see our tumbler glasses.
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