Caipiroska

Press and twist, four or five times, until the sugar looks wet and the wedges give up juice. Grinding the peel into the bottom of the glass drives bitter oil out of the pith, and a few extra seconds is the difference between fresh and medicinal.

Syrup dissolves better in a cold glass, and about twenty milliliters does it. What you lose is the grit: granulated sugar scrapes oil out of the peel while you muddle, which is where a lot of the aroma comes from. Superfine sugar splits the difference nicely.

Crushed is what makes it work. It chills a room-temperature glass in seconds and keeps diluting as you drink, which is how the sugar and lime stay in balance to the bottom. Cubes leave the first sips harsh and the last ones sweet. Wrap ice in a towel and hit it with a rolling pin.

More than you'd think. Cachaça is distilled from fresh cane juice and carries a grassy note that argues with the lime. Vodka carries nothing, so what you taste is lime oil, sugar and cold glass. The result is cleaner and much easier to drink two of.

A classic Caipiroska calls for 1 lime, in wedges Lime, 2 tsp sugar White sugar, 60 ml (2 oz) Vodka. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

A standard Caipiroska is roughly 40% ABV once mixed (before ice melt softens it further). That makes it spirit-forward — closer to a Martini than to a beer, so sip it slowly.

Serve a Caipiroska in a rocks glass (old fashioned glass), packed with crushed ice.