About Us
Flavour is Memory
My relationship with flavour didn’t begin in a laboratory or behind a high-end cocktail bar; it began in the kitchens and farmers markets of my childhood.
My father used to take me to the farmers market every week, teaching me the foundation of sourcing: how to touch, smell, and pick the exact right fruit and vegetable for the right dish. From my grandfather, I learned to observe exactly how flavours and textures behave in real-time. He taught me the instinctual, unspoken rules of cooking: knowing precisely how long to leave a fish on the grill, feeling if a pie dough was too stiff, or understanding when it needed just a splash more milk. He was the one who showed me the secret balance of spices required to make an unforgettable Feijoada.
My mother pushed that curiosity even further, teaching me to try something completely new at any given opportunity and to question how different flavour combinations interact. I was always captivated by her palate—she could taste a complex dish or dessert made by someone else and, with incredible precision, simply guess almost every single ingredient used.
They taught me how to taste with intention, instilling in me a deep sensory curiosity that has guided my entire life. To this day, I believe that a truly great drink does more than refresh—it triggers a memory, evokes a place, and tells a story.
The Professional Path
That early obsession with sensory memory naturally evolved into a career dedicated to the creation of drinks. In 2005, I moved to Ireland, where I spent nearly fifteen years operating at the absolute highest tier of the Dublin spirits and cocktail scene. Managing some of the city's most acclaimed hospitality spots, I established a reputation for technical precision, complex flavour mapping, and award-winning execution. Over the years, I became the trusted palate for international spirits brands, masterheading consumer blending experiences and refining how liquid behaves in the glass.
From Bar to Brand
Driven by the desire to push liquid boundaries beyond the bar, I eventually transitioned into full-scale product creation. Facing a gap in the European market for authentic, premium sugarcane spirits, I built Fubá Cachaça from absolute zero—entirely by myself. I handled every moving part: from sourcing raw liquid matrices on a single estate in Brazil to managing industrial scaling, technical bottle sourcing, compliance, and international distribution. It was a masterclass in proving that a liquid brand's success relies equally on molecular balance and absolute commercial viability.
The Atelier
Today, I am based in Lisbon, where I established Fluid Behaviour.Why should you work with usI created this studio because I realized the drinks industry was missing an agile, high-end partner. Traditional corporate flavour houses are bogged down by paperwork and clinical, data-driven formulas. Fluid Behaviour operates differently. We are a streamlined, modern atelier. By keeping our operation focused and personal, I can work faster, bringing you first flavour samples and compositions in days or weeks, rather than months.
Whether we are engineering a single signature liquid profile or building a turnkey product from scratch, my goal is to tailor your liquid like a fine suit—ensuring it carries both the technical precision required for global industry scaling and the sensory soul that makes it unforgettable.Our aim is to add a unique edge to your project. Call us for a chat now.
Sincerely,
Rafael Agapito
Founder, Liquid Behaviour
+351920733518
WhatsApp: +353864666985"Liquid Behaviour is an independent liquid development and flavor architecture studio founded by Rafael Agapito specializing in spirits innovation, R&D prototyping and botanical formulation
FUBÁ CACHAÇA
Chapter I: The Origins & The European Void
In 2009, after four years of navigating the European spirits landscape, I hit a wall of deep frustration. The market was devoid of high-quality, authentic cachaça.
Initially, the strategy was simple: identify an exceptional existing producer and bring their liquid to Europe. But every time momentum began to build, the commercial reality fell apart. Independent Brazilian distilleries either lacked the vision to invest in international marketing, or their liquid profiles were entirely unsuited to the nuanced expectations of the European palate.
Realizing that no one else was going to bridge this gap, I turned to my brother in Brazil. We stopped looking for someone else's solution and made a definitive choice: we would go straight to the source, map the terroir ourselves, and architect our own liquid and brand from the ground up.
Chapter II: The Terroir & The Slow Burn of R&D
The year 2010 was defined by relentless boots-on-the-ground sourcing. I made four separate trips across Brazil, hunting for the right distilling partner and an uncompromised liquid base.
At the time, international product development was painfully slow. Corporate communication was bogged down by regional delays; a single email or phone inquiry to a producer could take days, if not weeks, just to receive a response. To bypass the digital friction, I traveled directly through the sugarcane regions until we finally aligned with a distillery that shared our vision.
Together with our new partners, we spent nearly a year obsessively tweaking, compound testing, and refining a bespoke matrix. We engineered an entirely custom recipe and blend—the exact liquid architecture known today as Fubá Cachaça. By the dawn of 2011, the master liquid was finalized, the scalability was locked in, and we were standing on the precipice of the launch.
Chapter III: The Vessel & The Regulatory Labyrinth
Simultaneous to the liquid R&D, I had to architect the physical vessel. In 2010, the global supply chain was entirely different than the accessible landscape we see today. You could not simply order a small, curated pallet of bespoke glass; the industry demanded massive, container-load minimums. I had to hunt down suppliers, negotiate aggressively, and secure one of the few viable premium glass options available to an independent creator at the time.
Then came the visual and technical identity. I designed the first labels myself, which immediately exposed the hidden friction of full-scale brand creation: the regulatory labyrinth. It is in these granular details where most concepts fail. I had to decipher how to map barcode taxonomies for individual bottles versus master cases. I had to audit exact legal mandates to understand what mandatory text was required across different international borders.
By the end of 2010, the master liquid was locked, the vessel was fully compliant, and the packaging was secured. The product was tangible. The final hurdle was engineering the commercial strategy to get it out of the warehouse and onto the elite European back bar.
Chapter IV: The Liquid Identity & Market Conquest
At its core, Fubá Cachaça is a celebration of uncompromised tradition. It is a single-estate spirit, meticulously crafted using traditional copper pot stills. We engineered its molecular structure with a deliberate dual identity: complex and robust enough to hold its own as a premium base in high-end cocktail mixology, yet so remarkably refined, balanced, and smooth that it can be sipped entirely on its own—perhaps over a few slow-melting ice cubes, if you prefer.
The strategy worked flawlessly. Upon entering the market, we didn't just compete; we immediately captured the leadership of the highly competitive Irish spirits landscape. It was the ultimate commercial validation that when you perfectly balance creative sensory soul with rigorous technical execution, a brand can command absolute authority from day one.
Chapter V: The Global Scale & Liquid Evolution
The commercial impact was staggering. In a matter of just two years, we single-handedly grew the entire Cachaça category in Ireland from a mere 120 cases annually to over 1,000 cases, cementing Fubá as the best-selling Cachaça in the country.
That massive proof of concept caught the attention of global players, leading to a strategic partnership with Intrepid Spirits to handle our international distribution. Today, the brand continues to evolve. We have just completed our third iteration of packaging—a sophisticated design refresh that prepares the brand for its next major milestone. Very soon, Fubá will be launching into dynamic new markets all around the globe.
Drumshanbo Gunpowder Irish Gin
Chapter I: The Inversion of the Brief
In the premium spirits sector, the path to an iconic launch is rarely linear.
I was initially contracted by the founders of The Shed Distillery to engineer the liquid architecture for a completely different venture: a portfolio of three distinct luxury liqueurs designed to celebrate regional Irish ingredients.
We were deep in the R&D process, fine-tuning the base components and mouthfeel of those initial expressions, when the strategic direction shifted. Recognizing a distinct evolutionary gap in the rapidly expanding premium gin category, the founders made a pivotal decision: alongside the liqueur development, we were going to build a brand of gin from the ground up.
Chapter II: The Winning Matrix & The Global Spark
The development of the gin required a delicate balance between local terroir and international intrigue. I began mapping a spectrum of botanical arrays, searching for a singular, unexpected element that could completely redefine the liquid's sensory trajectory.
The breakthrough came when I engineered a series of prototypes infusing slow-dried gunpowder green tea.
The sample was an instant, undeniable triumph. It wasn’t just the structural balance of the flavor—crisp, bright citrus layered against a deep, exotic, slightly smoky tannin baseline—it was the narrative power of the ingredient itself. The moment the prototype was brought into the room, it captured immediate fascination; the moment it was tasted, everyone knew we had unlocked a category-defining liquid.
With the core formulation successfully proven, the project transitioned smoothly to the next phases of scaling: the head distiller engineered the industrial vapor-infusion production protocols, and a premier creative agency in Northern Ireland wrapped the liquid in its now-iconic cobalt blue glass.
Our studio delivered the definitive creative spark—the essential liquid DNA that transformed a new distillery's concept into one of the most successful international gin stories of the decade.
Blush Spritz
Chapter I: Redirecting the Global Trend
The inception of Blush Spritz occurred while I was operating a high-volume restaurant in one of Lisbon's most competitive, historic tourist districts.
Day after day, international travelers walked through our doors demanding the ubiquitous, standard Italian bittersweet spritz. To me, this represented a profound cultural mismatch: guests were immersing themselves in the vibrant atmosphere of Portugal, yet completely bypassing the country's world-class liquid heritage.
I set out to bridge this gap—not by refusing the global consumer desire for a crisp, refreshing spritz, but by completely re-engineering the drink's genetic makeup using elite Portuguese terroir. After months of trial, error, and meticulous compound mapping, I formulated an elegant modern modifier rooted in the country’s most iconic wine tradition: Port.
By combining a vibrant, custom-blend inspired by Rosé Port wine as a base, with complex bitters, bright citrus essential oils, and a delicate touch of authentic Portuguese fleur de sel, Blush Spritz was born.
Chapter II: The Conversational Pivot & Draft Scalability
The frontline validation of Blush Spritz was immediate and personal. Every time a guest ordered a standard Italian spritz, our team would simply smile and pivot the conversation: "Of course you can have one, but would you care to try something crafted right here with local heritage?"
The response was staggering. The consumer conversion rate was absolute, and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive—the dry, vibrant, deeply fresh flavor profile completely won over the modern palate.
To turn this localized triumph into an international commercial reality, we engineered Blush Spritz with a highly strategic Unique Selling Proposition: a premium draft-keg architecture. Packaged in efficient 20-liter commercial kegs, the liquid is perfectly carbonated, stable, and ready to pour directly from a tap. For a high-volume hospitality venue, the workflow friction vanishes entirely—the bartender simply pulls the tap handle and applies the fresh garnish.
Following this flawless proof of concept, we officially launched the liquid matrix in Ireland, with distribution expanding across major European markets by the end of the year, laying the exact pipeline for global expansion into premium international territories.
Dubh Irish Coffee
Chapter I: The Bartender’s Paradox
Dubh—pronounced dove—is the Irish Gaelic word for black. It is a direct homage to the liquid's core, but the true inception of this project began across my twenty years operating behind the world's elite bars.
In the hospitality industry, the traditional Irish Coffee represents a famous paradox: it is universally loved by guests, yet quietly dreaded by high-volume bartenders. When executed correctly, it is the ultimate expression of sensory comfort—the rich warmth of dark coffee, the deep molasses of demerara sugar, the sharp bite of Irish whiskey, all topped with a flawless layer of cold, lightly whipped fresh cream.
It is a drink of absolute precision, requiring exact temperature control and delicate layering. But in a fast-paced, high-volume environment, consistency is almost impossible to maintain. I set out to solve this structural friction—translating a complex, freshly-crafted hospitality ritual into a flawless, ready-to-serve format without sacrificing a single drop of its artisanal soul.
Chapter II: Eliminating the Friction
The reality of ordering a traditional Irish Coffee in a bustling pub is a sequence of operational chaos. Unless a station is meticulously prepped, the ticket triggers instant panic.
A bartender must step away to source fresh coffee, manually measure and whisk demerara sugar until dissolved, and pour the whiskey—all while battling human error and inconsistent ratios from pour to pour. Finally, they must hand-whip fresh cream to the exact floating density. Under pressure, consistency completely evaporates.
Dubh was engineered to eradicate this exact workflow friction.
We looked at the architecture of the drink not just as a recipe, but as an operational system. By masterfully pre-batching the core liquid matrix—locking the premium Irish whiskey, the rich roasted coffee compounds, and the precise demerara sugar ratios into a stable, flawless baseline—we minimized the entire bar preparation down to a matter of seconds.
The result is absolute execution efficiency: a high-volume venue can now deliver an immaculate, world-class Irish Coffee with zero variance, every single time the ticket prints.
The bottle contains the definitive, highly concentrated matrix of premium Irish whiskey, deep demerara sugar, and rich espresso profiles, perfectly stable at room temperature.
To serve, the operational workflow is reduced to a flawless 1:1 ratio:
To complete the sensory experience, the definitive garnish protocol requires a delicate, fine grating of fresh nutmeg across the top of the cream. The warm, woody spice cuts through the rich dairy instantly, elevating the nose before the first sip even hits the palate.
Through Dubh, we transformed a multi-step, high-stress bar ritual into a 20-second, foolproof luxury serve.
The Banana Bitters & The Old Fashioned Paradigm
When launching Fubá, I faced a deeply entrenched industry prejudice: the assumption that cachaça and sugarcane spirits are one-dimensional—only suitable for high-acid, sweet, or intensely fruity drinks like the Caipirinha.
To shatter this paradigm, I wanted to showcase Fubá inside a commanding, contemplative sipping cocktail—an Old Fashioned or a Manhattan. To achieve the exact depth required to anchor a white spirit in a slow-sipping format, I engineered a bespoke collateral product: a highly limited-edition Fubá Banana Bitters.
The liquid architecture was intensely personal and deeply technical:
The Infusion Base: Crafted using a high-proof Fubá Cachaça base to maintain absolute brand synergy.
The Botanical Matrix: A complex web of 21 separate botanicals infused over several weeks to build a dense, aromatic spine.
The Terroir Soul: Sweetened and rounded using a traditional, deeply caramelized banana marmalade sourced directly from the coast of Brazil near my childhood roots.
The bitters completely re-wrote the rules. We deployed them to add a rich, tropical, yet complexly dry baseline to Fubá Old Fashioneds and high-end Daiquiris. Originally utilized as an exclusive, high-value ritual gift for our foundational trade accounts, this master formulation remains in our vault—ready to be resurrected for a premium global limited-edition run.
Electric Pineapple — The Physiological Shift
The ultimate frontier of liquid architecture is not just altering how a drink tastes, but altering the physical biology of the palate itself.
To introduce a high-energy, experiential element to the Fubá portfolio, I turned to jambu—an extraordinary, indigenous Amazonian plant renowned for its ability to trigger an intense, vibrating, tingling sensation on the tongue. Crucially, jambu completely resets the consumer's taste dynamics, heightening their perception of flavor for several minutes immediately after tasting.
While jambu-infused spirits are traditionally consumed straight in northern Brazil, I engineered a sophisticated, globally accessible flavor matrix around the Jambu plant called Electric Pineapple:
The Acid & Sugar Spine: Fresh pineapples are meticulously pickled prior to processing, adding an intentional, complex lactic-acetic brightness.
The Botanical Depth: The pickled fruit is infused into a Fubá base along with heavy-vessel extractions of fresh ginger and crushed cardamom pods.
The Kinetic Finish: The final blend is laced with the raw jambu matrix, creating an initial burst of tropical heat, followed by a long, undulating, electric finish.
Following a highly successful prototype run, Electric Pineapple is officially locked for commercial rollout. Over the coming months, this avant-garde expression will launch globally as a high-margin, high-energy extension across every single established Fubá distribution market.
OUR FRAMEWORKSWe develop bespoke solutions to every project, but they usually fall into one of these three frameworks:Framework I: The Liquid Spark
Pure Sensory Formulation
We develop the recipe, map the ingredients, and deliver the final production-ready liquid samples. Designed for founders who already have their branding, bottling, and supply chain secured.Framework II: Liquid & Brand Composition
Dual-Track Architecture
We design the liquid while simultaneously organizing your label compliance, bottle sourcing, and identity guidelines. Built for entrepreneurs looking for a complete asset package ready to hand directly to contract producers.Framework III: The Turnkey Venture
End-to-End Brand Authorship
We manage everything from raw terroir sourcing to navigating international legal regulations and launching the final product to market. Tailored for corporate groups, luxury estates, or high-ticket investors.Call us now, we would love to help you get your next project off the ground.
+351920733518.