Continuing in its mission to craft fearless brands, Intrepid Spirits, an independently owned Irish beverage company with offices in Dublin, Shanghai, Chicago and San Francisco, has added Brazilian Cachaça brand Fubá to its innovative portfolio in time for Brazilian Independence Day on 7th September. Rafael Agapito, Fubá’s founder, will continue to be involved in the development of the brand, working closely with the whole team at Intrepid to expand the distribution and presence of Fubá globally. A brand with sustainability at its heart, Fubá will also be working with Intrepid Spirits to donate proceeds from sales of its cachaça to União Amazonia Viva, an NGO helping to protect endangered native tribes in the Amazon.
Fubá Cachaça was created by brothers Raf and Cassiano Agapito, who were determined to create an authentic cachaça using traditional methods, coupled with modern, sustainable techniques. Working with communities and co-operatives in their native Brazil, their mission is to bring a handcrafted, traditional cachaça of the highest quality at an accessible price.
Raf Agapito commented: “Our goal when founding Fubá Cachaça back in 2011 was to introduce a quality hand crafted cachaça to a global audience. After years of leading the market in Ireland, we realised we would need to join forces with an innovative, dynamic company to be able to reach strategic markets efficiently.” He continued “We are very excited to partner with Intrepid Spirits and gain access to an experienced, results driven team that has been very successful in building global premium brands. We are looking forward to this new chapter for Fubá and the global cachaça market”
Fubá Cachaça is handcrafted in small batches using traditional methods and double-distilled in copper pot stills. All of Fubá’s ingredients are sourced from independent farms and sustainability is at the heart of everything the brand does. Its farms operate a ‘zero waste’ policy – after hand-harvesting the cane, and extracting and fermenting the juice, leftover cane fibres are used to fuel the steam powered stills, and other by-products are returned to the field to fertilise the soil. Fubá is made using the freshest sugarcane, pressed within 24 hours of harvest, grown on the surrounding farms, on a cooperative system where all farmers contribute with their crops to produce the base spirit of Fubá. The co-op helps farmers get a fair price for their crops and maintain favourable working conditions for the community.
Cachaça is traditionally known for being the base spirit in one of the world’s most popular cocktails, the caipirinha, but is also a wonderfully versatile cocktail ingredient, and Fubá is an excellent substitute in traditionally gin, or tequila-based cocktails. The combination of maize (known as Fubá de Milho from which the brand takes its name) and citrus peel imparts a fragrant floral nose and a peppery finish, while the copper distillation gives Fubá its characteristic subtle mouthfeel with notes of liquorice, almond and green bananas. At 40% ABV, Fubá is stronger than most competitors, allowing the flavour to shine through any well-balanced cocktail. Signature serves include the Fubá Smash made with Fubá Cachaça, lemon, basil and sugar and the Santos Express made with Fubá Cachaça, coffee, vanilla syrup and chilli flakes.
“Fubá is a pure, 100% sugarcane cachaça with no additives. As it is double distilled in copper pots, it has a much rounder mouthfeel than its mass-produced counterparts and has no added sugar, resulting in a dry cachaça that makes it perfect for mixing” says Agapito.
With this announcement, Fubá will join Intrepid’s global spirits portfolio which includes Egan’s Irish
Whiskey, Cocalero, Mad March Hare Irish Poitín and most recently, Regal Rogue vermouth. In addition to its own brands, Intrepid also manages the distribution of several world class spirits in Ireland including Michter’s Whiskey, Pusser’s Rum, Merlet Cognac, Los Javis Mezcal and Kyrö Gin. Intrepid Spirits is also a proud member of Rainforest Trust and has helped to conserve approximately 20,000 acres to date of tropical threatened forest.
John Ralph, CEO Intrepid Spirits commented “We are excited to have Raf and his fantastic brand Fubá with its strong commitment to sustainability in our portfolio. Intrepid Spirits is about fearlessly trailblazing across diverse categories, continents and cultures, and Fubà fits our strategy perfectly.” He continued: “Intrepid are also delighted to be involved with União Amazonia Viva to protect endangered native tribes Brazil, building on our support of Rainforest Trust in the Eastern Andean Rainforest.”
Fubá Cachaca is distributed by Intrepid Spirits and is available at Celtic Whiskey Shop, L Mulligan Whiskey Shop, O’Briens, www.simplywinesdirect.uk and other select retailers in the UK and Ireland. For more information visit www.intrepid-spirits.com and www.drinkfuba.com.
