The caipirinha is made with cachaça, Brazil's own spirit, distilled from fresh sugarcane juice rather than molasses, which gives it a grassy, fruity character quite unlike rum. Its origins are usually traced to the countryside of São Paulo state in the early twentieth century, and Brazil has since made it the official national cocktail by decree.

The method is the charm: no shaker, no strainer, just a glass, a muddler and a willingness to get your hands sticky. It is the drink of every Brazilian weekend, and the Interlagos weekend is no exception.

The cocktail

Ingredients

• 1 juicy lime
• 2 to 3 teaspoons (8 to 12 g) superfine or granulated sugar
• 2 oz (60 ml) cachaça
• 1 cup crushed ice

Method

1. Roll the lime firmly on the counter under your palm to loosen the juice. Cut off both ends, cut it in half from top to bottom, and slice out the white core running down the middle of each half: it is bitter. Cut each half into 4 wedges.
2. Put the lime wedges in the glass skin side down, sprinkle the sugar over them and press down firmly with the muddler, twisting, 6 to 8 times. Press enough to release juice and oil from the skin, not to shred the peel, which turns bitter.
3. Wrap ice cubes in the towel and bash them with the rolling pin into small pieces.
4. Fill the glass to the top with crushed ice, pour over the cachaça and stir well from the bottom with the bar spoon, lifting the limes through the ice.

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