Guia Cultural da Costa Verde

Paraty • Paraty

PEDRA BRANCA CACHAÇA DE PARATY

Tradition and technology amidst exuberant scenery

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Enclosed in the middle of the Atlantic Coast Rain Forest and its beautiful green hills, in an enchanting setting of the Pedra Branca valley, the Sítio Pedra Branca property is located. It has been producing a well known cachaça and other typical goods since 2009.

The fascination felt by engineer Lucio Gama Freire for distilling cachaça led him to exclusive dedication to the activity, previously merely a hobby. Having attended training courses at the local Sebrae small business agency, and partnered with the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro and other supporters, he experimented by planting seven kinds of sugarcane in order to define which was best adapted to the soil and had the features required for quality and productivity.

There is an ongoing investment in new technologies while employing traditional distilling processes. The guided tour discloses the methods and techniques employed to gain product quality as well as the concerns with the environment.

The annual harvest until 2013 resulted in 20,000 liters, which is currently subject to a projected increase. The end products vary between the yellowish Gold that is stored in oak casks, the Silver, a white variety stored in amendoim bravo casks, the Caramel prepared with pure cachaça combined with brown sugar and ginger, and the Gabriela which is pure and infused with brown sugar, cloves and cinnamon.

Pedra Branca cachaça is one of a select group of half a dozen producers from Paraty that bear the Inmetro seal, denoting above-average excellence requirements. Recognition as a quality product is also evidenced by the several prizes awarded in contests, such as the 2011 blind tasting in São Paulo that ranked the Gold variety in first and the Silver in third places.

In addition to the distillery, other goods produced include treacle (used to substitute sugar), rapadura (unrefined sugar), demerara sugar, honey, banana preserve and home-made sweets, caramelized milk with or without chocolate and seasonal fruit such as strawberries, jackfruit, guavas and coconut. In addition, peppers, seasoning and jams are also on sale, among which the favorites are peppers and dried tomatoes.

Visits to the property are available in vans or jeeps and will no doubt please by virtue of the venue’s natural attractions and the impeccable teamwork, together with the pride in offering its quality assured goods.

Those who wish may extend their visit over a few more kilometers to the trail that leads to the Pedra Branca falls, with its cascading clear ice-cold water and natural pools within sight of the restless marmosets living in the woods. A wonderful option for a warm day and for acquiring an excellent cachaça!

Information