The mojito's Brazilian cousin, the caipirinha might have been invented merely to serve as a perfect example of the compound French adjective, jolie-laide -- literally, "pretty-ugly." Like a cheekbony, slash-mouthed supermodel, this drink somehow repels and attracts. Cachaça, the raw sugarcane spirit from which it is made, looks like vodka and tastes like it was aged in old truck tires. Mixed with lime, sugar, and ice, however, it intoxicates strangely and doesn't taste half bad.
