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11 Iconic Brazilian Cocktails You Should Be Drinking

Sweet and with tropical hints, Brazilian cocktails are delicious and easy to prepare.

Most of them are made with cachaça, our local spirit extracted from sugar cane.

Although some people outside of Brazil call it white rum, these liquors are in essence and taste very different from each other.

But I get into it in this post, for the sake of keeping it on topic – I’m here to give you some fantastic Brazil cocktail ideas. (The most popular ones!)

Brazilian cocktails

Most Brazilian cocktail recipes have fruit, cachaça, or sweetened condensed milk. Or all of them together.

Fruit mixed drinks definitely make sense when talking about Brazil since our country is tropical.

But the truth is we love our national spirit, and most Brazilians have a sweet tooth.

That’s the best definition, or better put, the best explanation for the repetitive use of these ingredients – fruit, cachaça, and sweetened condensed milk.

Granted, it’s very pleasant to sit on the beach or even go out for some drinks and sip any of these tropical Brazilian cocktails.

Just so you know, even our winter cachaça drinks have tropical touches, as you will see here.

On a side note: this article is about Brazilian cocktails (mixed drinks) only, for our pure beverages, check out my post on Brazilian drinks here.

Ready to learn about some delicious Brazilian cocktails? Read on!

Vinho quente

Vinho quente, tropical mulled wine from Brazilian
Vinho quente, the tropical mulled wine from Brazilian

Very popular during the June Parties, vinho quente (English: hot wine) is the Brazilian version of mulled wine.

Mind you, June is the first month of winter in Brazil. Not that it freezes outside, but it does get pretty chilly for Brazilian standards.

That’s why it is so delicious to drink a warm vinho quente during these June Parties when we gather to dance, eat, and drink outside.

This cocktail was created in the southern region in the 19th-century, where the communities of European immigrants were much more considerable than in the other areas of Brazil.

Vinho quente is made of wine, water, sugar, lime, cinnamon, cloves, and pieces of orange and apple. Unlike mulled wine, this drink has bits of fruit in it, which gives a tropical touch to it.

Quentão

Quentao, Brazilian cocktail

Quentão is another drink typical of the Brazilian winter that is very popular during the June Parties.

This Brazilian cocktail is basically made of cachaça, water, sugar, ginger, cloves, and cinnamon.

Quentão is tasty and warms up well not only because of the spirit but also because of the spices.

However, there is a lot of confusion in Brazil regarding quentão and vinho quente.

In some regions, people call quentão the drink with wine instead of the one with cachaça, for example.

So when traveling in Brazil, if you see a stand selling this drink, be sure to ask if it’s made with wine or cachaça to make sure you’re ordering the right one.

Xiboquinha

Xiboquinha, Brazilian cachaça drink

Xiboquinha appeals to all audiences, but it fits perfectly young people who are always looking for new drinks and cocktails.

The drink is a tasty blend made of cachaça, honey, lime juice, cloves, cinnamon, and spices.

There are several ways to enjoy a xiboquinha, such as pure, with ice, with coconut water, or with other drinks.

While you can prepare this Brazilian cocktail at home, there is a bottled version of it at 22% ABV.

For me, the homemade version of xiboquinha is much tastier than the industrialized bottle.

Caju amigo

Caju amigo, Brazilian cocktail
The best Brazilian cocktail for a hot day, Caju amigo

The caju amigo, which in English literally means “friendly cashew,” is a cocktail that mixes a typical Brazilian fruit with vodka – the cashew apple.

Caju amigo is made of a canned cashew apple, a little sugar, concentrated cashew juice, ice cubes, and vodka, of course.

The cashew apple’s dry touch mixes perfectly with vodka in this tropical cocktail.

Obviously, it’s not a surprise that this summer drink is so popular throughout Brazil.

Final words on Brazilian cocktails

As you might have noticed, we Brazilians have a sweet tooth. Not only many of our desserts have sweetened condensed milk but also plenty of our drinks.

It might sound too much, but since we don’t drink them so often, it’s ok.

If you want to learn some cocktail recipes, check out here my archive on the best Brazilian drinks you could be sipping at home right now.

Did you like this list with the best Brazilian cocktails? Then save it to Pinterest or share it with a friend who might like it, too!

Ester

Sunday 8th of October 2023

Pau na coxa, não espanhola. Muitas coisas erradas nessa matéria.

Bruna

Wednesday 29th of November 2023

Hey Ester, the name of this cocktail is espanhola just as stated on the article. The one you mean, pau na coxa, doesn't take pineapple. Nothing wrong here ;)