Amburana

Amburana is not subtle.

Amburana cearensis is a South American hardwood with a long history in Brazilian cachaça, where native woods became part of the aging tradition alongside oak. Of those woods, amburana is one of the most distinctive.

A big part of that comes down to chemistry.

Amburana is rich in coumarin, an aromatic compound also associated with tonka bean and freshly cut hay. In wine, cider or spirits, it can push intense notes of cinnamon, baking spice, vanilla, caramel and sweet wood.

And it moves fast.

Amburana can give up a lot of aroma and flavor in a relatively short amount of time, especially when there is a high ratio of wood to liquid. That makes it interesting to work with, but it also makes restraint important. A little can add another layer. Too much, or too long, and it can take over the entire drink.

That is part of what makes it so different from the French oak we normally work with. It is not a replacement for oak, and we are not trying to make it behave like oak. It is its own material, with its own history, chemistry and very recognizable character.

And once you taste what it can do, it is hard not to start thinking about where else it might work. In a red wine, especially something with ripe dark fruit and enough structure to stand up to it, those cinnamon, vanilla and baking-spice notes could be fascinating — not as the dominant flavor, but as a small layer behind the fruit. Something like Syrah, Grenache or Zinfandel immediately comes to mind.

We decided to see what it could do.

The result is Umburana Gold, on tap now. What should we try it with next — maybe a red wine? Syrah? Grenache? Zinfandel?

— Ray