AGRO INDUSTRY DA COLÔNIA NOVA
Location
Agro industry Colônia Nova is located in the state of Rio Grande do Sul in the northwest region, near the Uruguay River in Lajeado Fazenda, countryside – 20 km from the municipality of Crissiumal, near the Argentinian border. In the south part it is located the Buricá River, 1500 meters from the agroindustry, and in the west part the Uruguay River, distance 3000 meters.
History
Agro industry Colônia Nova was founded officially on January, 3rd 2001 by a group of six families of small farmers with an average area of 10 hectars. However, for legal effects an individual company started in the name of only one of the partners.
Two families had the tradition to produce cachaça (sugar cane liquor), they learned with their grandparents, who have produced it since the 1940s. However, the production at that time was totally homemade and the sugar cane liquor was commercialized without a brand (in 4-litter bottles) for local consumption. The brand Tropical Brazilis was only created recently, in the beginning of 2003, with the objective of reaching national and international markets. Before this, the agroindustry already worked with regional brands (such as Vale do Rio Uruguai), to reach local consumers.
Currently, the Agro industry Colônia Nova is maintained by a "Machado" family.
Acceptance
Registered especially for exporting, the brand Tropical Brazilis has also been well accepted in the regional market and at State level, mainly for being the exporting kind.
Cachaça’s properties
The cachaça by the Agroindustry Colônia Nova is well accepted by the consumers who appreciate a pure liquor, mainly the one aged in wooden barrels, such as oak.
This cachaça has differentiated from the others for having less acidity and consequently for being less aggressive to tasting. This is also provided by the ingredients that form the cachaça’s bouquet, such as esters and alcohols which are superior by the typical aroma, pleasant, pungent and light.
The leaven used in the Tropical Brazilis cachaça’s production is adapted to this region (from Saccharomyces cerevisiae). An efficient leaven responsible for the quality of the product, favored by the region’s climate – humidity above 70% which is extended from May to August, extreme temperature which may arrive to -2° Celsius, but in a general way varies from 10 to 25° Celsius.
The Tropical Brazilis cachaça is organic because in the whole production process, chemical additives are not used.
This region still conserves part of the Mata Atlântica, which favors the ecological production of the product (bio) - without using herbicides, insecticides, fungicide or any other kind of fertilizer with chemical synthesis (nitrogen fertilizer, for example). Besides, the sugar cane is not burnt before being cut, favoring the multiplication of live microorganisms in the soil, responsible for the acceleration in decomposing organic matter.
Fertilization of sugar cane is performed with rock powder and organic compounds (made of sugar cane bagasse and birds’ excrement).
Since 2003 we have the national and international certification for the European Economic Community for producing organic cachaça.
Who certifies is ECO CERT, French certifier, but currently with headquarters in Germany, with a branch in Brazil, in Florianopolis, SC.
Cachaça Production
The sugar cane liquor produced in the Agroindustry Colônia Nova is elaborated artisanally and all the process is organic (bio), this way, we will describe summarily below the production process of sugar cane and the manufacturing of the liquor.
a) Soil:
The soil used for the sugar cane production presents little depth but high natural fertility. These are soils with a rate of clay of 45 %, good drainage and a lot of rocks in process of disaggregation. These rocks are responsible for the high fertility, because they release nutrients, such as potassium, iron and other micro nutrients. These soils are rated as lytholic.
This condition is proper for the good development of the sugar cane, which has presented equal yields to other producing regions of the country. Also, besides the climate condition, it is ideal to reach a great quality of sugar cane, reflecting in the quality of the final product.
b) Sugar cane production:
The planting of sugar cane is performed at the end of winter, August to October, from sugar canes adapted to the South region of Brazil. Its vegetative development occurs from September to the middle of April and the harvest takes place in the winter, from June to September, and it may extend to November for late varieties.
Different from other producing regions of Brazil, here the maturing of the sugar cane is provoked by cold, providing a good saccharose inversion. This way, it is possible to obtain a sugar cane liquor with low acidity, lighter to taste.
We always harvest one-year-old canes, considering that ratoons are renewed each 5 years, and taking into account their sprout power (perennial cultivation).
c) Fermentation and Distillation:
After extracting the cane juice, it is fermented. Supplements are used to strengthen the yeast such as organic rice crumbs, organic wheat crumbs and organic oat floccules.
After 24 hours of fermentation, the distillation process can be started for the extraction of the cachaça. In this process, it is sought to select the so-called “heart” of the sugar cane liquor, not taking the products that evaporate before the alcohol and are toxic, like aldeids and esters, nor products with boiling points superior to the ethylic alcohol like superior alcohols, furfural and hybrid products.
This way, when extracted, the cachaça has 40% alcohol, being then stored.
From the sugar cane cut to the fermentation process, 48 hours are spent.
d) Storing:
The cachaça is stored in wood and stainless steel barrels. For the market of caipirinha (sugar cane liquor along with lemon, ice and sugar) especially for Chjlya-cocktails it is destined the transparent cachaça that is in stainless steel. For the lovers of pure cachaça as Chjlya Cachaça barrique, it is destined the aged one.
In the process of aging, the cachaça remains in barrels (grapia and oak). For the consumption of pure cachaça, the preference is for the one aged in oak barrels, called exactly “aged”. It is not advisable to make caipirinha with aged cachaça because certainly part of its aroma will not be felt when tasting.
Caipirinha, as well as other compound drinks must be made with the cachaça “prata” (“silver”). Our cachaça, even when making caipirinha, presents a final product with great aroma and flavor, considering the chemical compounds described previously.
The storage time by the final consumer may be for as long as he/she wants.
Crissiumal, December, 26 – 2013.
Roberto Tormes Machado