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Edward Snell – Whisky from South Africa

Edward Snell founded a trading company in Durban in 1848, from which the oldest spirit company in South Africa developed over 160 years. Following an eventful history, the company is now once again in the hands of the family. Besides their own brands they also sell numerous local and international drink brands, mostly in various markets in Africa and the Middle East.

The wide range of products includes whisky, brandy, vodka, rum, gin, tequila and cognac. One outstanding label is Firstwatch Whisky with its new look, a striking, square bottle design. Consumer demand for a whisky with an American taste profile has been perfected over time and is presented today as a balanced blend of the finest imported rye and grain. Whether pure, on the rocks or mixed – its diversity makes it popular with many different target groups and successful in one of the largest spirit segments in South Africa.

At the World Spirits Award, there was gold for Firstwatch Whisky.

2B Hemp Gin: Styrian gin experience

Two visionaries, Armin Breinl (doctor, drink creator, musician) and Wolfgang Thomann (gin maker), have created a completely new gin experience with real hemp powder: 2B HEMP GIN (inspired by AEIJST). On 17th November 2018, the two invited guests to the first tasting of 2B HEMP GIN in the AEIJST GIN distillery in St. Nikolai in the Sausal Valley.

Made from organic juniper berries, this innovative gin has an impressive, mild and fruity taste and a typical hemp note. Due to its unique aroma, it not only tastes good neat, but also creates a ‘wow’ effect in cocktails – as proven in the long drink Styrian Pale Gin AEIJST refined with 2B HEMP.

For thousands of years, hemp has been grown as a valuable plant, be it for rope, fabric, paper or as an active ingredient in ointments and tinctures. Hemp has always been highly valued for its medicinal properties, yet recently has been demonised as an addictive drug and has suffered under its ensuing prohibition, originating in the USA. These days hemp is regaining importance and is being used more as a luxury food as well as in medicine as a therapeutic agent.

The Lifestyle Trading company, run by Armin Breinl, is an innovative beverage producer, which is already known amongst trade professionals for its sugar-free ‘func- tional fruit drinks’. The drinks have a high fruit content (more than 50 per cent) and additional natural, vital substances and have an energising, relaxing and regenerative effect.

At the World Spirits Award, there was silver for 2B HEMP GIN.

Skiclub Kampen: Purism from the North Sea

In 1989, Pius Regli and Jörg Hinck founded the Kampen ski club whilst enjoying an excellent, home-distilled vodka on the island of Sylt. From then on they competed against each other every year in a ski race in Zermatt, and the winner became the club president for the following year. In 2012, Ulrich Graf, a businessman from Dortmund and manager of Skiclub Kampen GmbH, developed the spirits and designed the unique bottle for North Sea, the premium brand name for gin, vodka and vodka-based drinks. The demands are high for this handcrafted alcohol from Germany. The basis for all the spirits is the vodka, five-times distilled and filtered extremely slowly through a silver dust filter.

After intensive observation of the market, Ulrich Graf only saw the chance to make their mark amongst the global players and established brands with a unique bottle: “The bottle should be recognisable from 15 to 20 metres distance from across the club.” The bottle design of a French manufacturer convinced them: it underscores the purity of the content with its purist form – inspired by the clear countryside of the North Sea and the Wadden Sea. After six months’ development, an all-over coating was found which felt warm and soft, and from which condensed water rolled off. Every flavour has its own colour which corresponds to the colour of the drink (for example, a bright, strong red for blood orange with vodka), sending out a clear message.

At the World Spirits Award, there was gold for North Sea Gin and North Sea Vodka.

Walter Trausner: New beginnings with gin

Mr Trausner’s story begins at the start of the 1990s. After studying distillery and fermentation technology, he founded the Gasser-Trausner distillery in the Lungau region in the province of Salzburg, but was forced to close it less than ten years later. At the beginning of 2000, Walter Trausner and his wife, Eva, founded the ‘Trausners Genusswerkstatt’ factory and made a name for themselves with jams and sweets. In 2015, he invented ENZO Alpin, the world’s first soft drink made from gentian. Cordials soon followed, and then a second ENZO Alpin soft drink and two spirits: a bitter liqueur based on citrus fruit and gentian, and a London Dry Gin.

From 2019, Walter Trausner once again started to apply himself to the art of distillation and combined his experience with his usual perfectionist demands of the products. As well as gin, he also plans to distil single-variety grain distillates and whisky. Each kind of grain has its own particular taste – and this advantage is used to create a suitable distillate for each grain. The regional components also play a vital role, as the Lungau microclimate and pure mountain spring water offer ideal conditions for the maturing and mashing processes.

The first distillate from the Trausner company was a classic London Dry Gin made from wheat brandy, 23 botanicals and fresh organic bitter orange peel. The recipe dates back to 1997, when the distiller was one of the first in Austria to take a chance on what, at that time, was just a novelty: gin. He currently reinterprets old knowledge from monastery distilleries and produces liqueurs using an elaborate procedure – the basis are homemade grain spirits from local types of grain.

At the World Spirits Award, there was gold for Lungaus Gentle Giant – New Single Malt, and silver for Lungaus Gentle Giant – Herb Liqueur and Lungaus Gentle Giant – APERO Liqueur.