Yaguara Tropical

Brazil's national spirit, the rumlike cachaça, has risen in both quality and profile. Brazilian bartenders use it to replace other spirits in classic drinks like the Negroni and the mojito, but recently mixologists have been creating original cocktails with it. At Chez Oscar, a new, three-level restaurant with a rooftop bar in São Paulo, they serve it with tangerine juice and a puckering hit of lemongrass.

MAKES 1 COCKTAIL

1 lemongrass stalk, trimmed
¾ oz. fresh lemon juice
½ oz. simple syrup
1¾ oz. Yaguara Cachaça
¾ oz. Cointreau
2 oz. fresh tangerine juice
tangerine wedge, to garnish

Thinly slice half the lemongrass stalk; muddle with fresh lemon juice and simple syrup in a shaker. Add Yaguara Cachaça, Cointreau, and ice; shake and strain into an ice-filled collins glass. Top with tangerine juice; garnish with remaining half of lemongrass stalk and a wedge of tangerine.