Macunaíma

Inspired By:

Boca de Ouro (São Paulo)

Complexity

Alcohol Level

2/5

Medium

Type

Sour

Preparation

Shaken

Glass

Lowball

Ice

None

INGREDIENTS

Choeng Doi Blanc • 50 ml / 1.7 oz

Fresh lime juice • 20 ml / 0.75 oz

Simple syrup • 20 ml / 0.75 oz

Fernet-Branca • 7 ml / 0.25 oz

STEPS

1. Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice

2. Shake vigorously until well chilled (15 seconds)

3. Double-strain into a chilled lowball glass

4. Serve without ice, no garnish

NOTES:

A cachaça sour given bittersweet herbal depth by a dash of Fernet-Branca. Traditionally shaken hard to froth the citrus, then strained neat into a small glass without ice - the drink is meant to be light and bracing on its own, not diluted further.

This version uses Choeng Doi Blanc in place of cachaça, letting the agricultural sugarcane character stand in for cachaça's own funk while keeping the same bright, herbal balance.

Feel free to experiment with flavored simple syrups in place of the plain version - a sage syrup works particularly well here, adding an earthy, savory note that plays nicely against the Fernet-Branca's bitterness.

HISTORY

The Macunaíma was created in 2014 by bartender Arnaldo Hirai at his bar Boca de Ouro in São Paulo, Brazil, during the buildup to that year's World Cup. Hirai wanted a cocktail that captured Brazilian spirit using cachaça, a native spirit he felt was underrepresented behind the bar.

He named the drink after the title character of Mário de Andrade's 1928 novel Macunaíma, a foundational text of Brazilian modernism. The cocktail spread rapidly across São Paulo and then the rest of the country, becoming an instant modern classic found on bar menus nationwide.

This adaptation honors that spirit of national pride in agricultural spirits, showing how Choeng Doi Blanc can carry the same bold, citrus-forward character that made the original a household name in Brazil.