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Bimmerle: Know-how meets regionality and trend awareness

At the production site in the Black Forest town of Sasbach, which was opened in 2015, this family business sets innovative standards in technology, sustainability and environmental protection. For the last five decades, Bimmerle has strived for the highest quality, with focussed know-how, modern high-tech and the traditional art of distilling. This is the first distillery in Germany where all the heating requirements and power generation are covered by the burning of fruit stones combined with woodchips from the region.

In Germany and on the European market, Bimmerle is a leader in the fruit brandies sector with the Lörch brand. In order to make the ‘playground’ more interesting, the brand identity was modernised in 2024 and will be extended in 2025 by a fruit brandy range matured in wooden casks. Needle Black Forest Gin is among the top 5 most widely sold gins in Germany. The portfolio has been expanded since 2018 with WOOD STORK Spiced Rum and the EVERMANN Black Forest whiskies Theo & Wilhelm introduced in 2022. The Black Forest distillery has enriched the liqueur and aperitif market with as many as five exciting creations under the DON PASQUALE brand.

The World Class Distillery 2025 & Distillery of the Year 2025 – Bronze (Bitters & Liqueurs) received Gold for Don Pasquale Limoncello Liqueur, Zünftler Waldhimbeergeist (wild raspberry spirit), Wood Stork Spiced Rum, Lörch Waldhimbeergeist (wild raspberry spirit), Lörch Vanillekipferl Sahnelikör (vanilla cream liqueur), Needle Gin Green, Don Pasquale Aperitif Bitter Liqueur, Don Pasquale Espresso Martini Liqueur, Don Pasquale Hazelnut Liqueur and Lörch Linzertorte Sahnelikör (Linzer tart cream liqueur). Silver was awarded to Kronenhof Alter Williams Christ Birnenbrand (pear brandy), Lörch Alte Williams Christ Birne (pear brandy), Zinselhof Alter Williams Christ Birnenbrand (pear brandy), Lörch Altes Schwarzwälder Zwetschgenwasser (damson spirit), Needle Blackforest Distilled Dry Gin, Needle Gin Rosé, Don Pasquale Pistachio Cream Liqueur, Lörch Bratapfel Sahnelikör (baked apple cream liqueur), Zünftler Alte Williams Christ Birne (pear brandy), Lörch Williams Spirituose im Holzfass gelagert (pear spirit aged in a wooden cask) and Lörch Marille Spirituose im Holzfass gelagert (apricot spirit aged in a wooden cask), and Bronze to Lörch Obst Spirituose im Holzfass gelagert (fruit spirit aged in a wooden cask).

Euphoria: Rediscovery of an inspiring drink

After being hidden for more than a century, a very old recipe has once again come to light: Artista has been reborn. The unusual story behind it starts in a dark attic, with a yellowed sheet of paper as the guardian of a secret: a bitter drink with an old-fashioned taste, referred to as the ‘quintessence of creativity’. The legend tells of painters, musicians and poets from the old continent, who enjoyed a mysterious, amber-coloured elixir in Livorno that was able to bring their most inspired works to life – somewhere between a meeting at a literary café and a walk along the famous coast of this exceptional town. Freed from taxes and other duties, it was populated by merchants, artists and seafarers of various cultures and origins. It was a port of people and goods, and a crossroads for ideas in particular, which was able to inspire many – even if they were just passing through.

Selected according to the old original recipe, the ingredients were rediscovered and reworked in the search for an elegant and enticing taste. 33 herbs, spices and extracts are traditionally processed to create an exclusive and absolutely timeless bitter. The result is an amber-coloured liqueur boasting a hint of aromatic lemon and a sweet and delicate lasting taste.

Amaro Artista achieved gold at the World Spirits Award.

Rum Enterprise: A new era of Cuban rum

Towards the end of 2020, the French spirits company Moët Hennessy announced the market launch of Eminente Reserva. The rum was developed with César Martí, Maestro Ronero of the enterprise Cuba Ron. He experiments with different degrees of maturation of aguardientes, especially aromatic and complex sugar cane distillates, in different surroundings and barrels. Eminente Reserva represents a combination of the two Cuban rum types, the intensive-dry Occidente and the fruity-mild Oriente, inspired by the 19th century, enriched by a mix of different sugar cane distillates that have been stored for years in whisky barrels made of white oak. The proportion of 70 percent by volume aguardientes is one of the highest in the country and sets new benchmarks. Eminente Gran Reserva, a ten-year-old rum that received a three-month finish in French oak barrels, matured in a cellar where water evaporates faster than alcohol, hence the above-average alcohol content.

The Eminente rums are among the few in Cuba that carry the Denominación de Origen Protegida status. The protected designation of origin regulates authenticity and high standards. The newcomer is the aromatic Carta Oro, a five-year-old Cuban rum, which corresponds to the minimum ageing period of its most recent aguardientes in barrels. It matures in white oak barrels that were previously used for whisky, and at 40.3% vol. follows the Cuban rum tradition.

Eminente Reserva, Eminente Gran Reserva Edition N°2 and Eminente Carta Oro won Gold at the World Spirits Award.