World-Spirits Online Guide Abo – order now

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.

Limomacher: Regionally produced – socially labelled

Limomacher is a young Bregenz enterprise, according to their own definition “excellent in graphics, design, customer service, lemonade production, social involvement and coffee drinking”. However, a look at the brief biographies of the four-person team reveals quite a bit about their wide-ranging qualifications. All lemonades are produced regionally in Vorarlberg according to their own recipes. Short pathways right up until labelling – also labels for private customers and companies on request – reinforce sustainability, along with filling exclusively in glass bottles. The labelling, as well as the whole warehousing, are handled by Lebenshilfe Vorarlberg, a support organisation for people with disabilities. This is an indication that social thinking has been of great importance from the beginning.

At the beginning of 2018, the ‘Franz von Durst’ brand started in Spar shops, followed by the start-up shelf at Metro. The company developed a gin along with a tonic water for this purpose, as the first manufacturer in retailing that offers both as a one-stop shop. The gin that is also regionally produced goes perfectly with the tonic water and its animating and aromatic concept offers an exceptionally fruity drinking experience. Aside from the juniper base, five further botanicals play a role: angelica root provides a slight tanginess and supports the homogenous taste; orange peel is characterised by a range of aromatic substances and a fine hint of citrus; liquorice provides a complex sweetness with a slightly earthy note; elderberry has an intensive and refreshing taste; and hops gives it a special something.

“We are delighted that the Vorarlberg locals have received our gin so well and that we can expand step by step also into other provinces,” say the two young entrepreneurs.

At the World Spirits Award, gold was achieved by Franz von Durst Gin, and silver by Franz von Durst Dry Gin Wild.

Krater Spirits: 400 years of tradition in Nördling

In the year 1621, the Alerheim innkeeper Caspar Beck received the entitlement from the ruling count at Oettingen ‘to brew beer and to run a brandy house’. This inheritance was continued by the family and supplemented by a herb liqueur with ginger and peppermint, which was launched on the market in 2013. The name ‘Kraterfeuer’ (Crater Fire) is due to its warming pungency. In 2015, Bavarian Krater Noster Distilled Dry Gin was added, for which wild juniper berries from the wild heath Rieser Heide were used, selected by hand on the edge of the crater that was formed 14 million years ago with the impact of a meteorite.

Since 2020, there is also Full Moon Krater Noster Distilled Dry Gin, a homage to the Apollo astronauts who trained here in 1970 for their voyage to the moon. NASA had sent them to Bavaria to prepare them for their mission in similar geological conditions. The suevite rock in the Ries region was fby that meteorite‘s impact – like the moon craters visible from Earth. Therefore, the Full Moon edition was composed with wild juniper berries from the edge of the crater and beguiling moon plants such as sweet-tart meadowsweet.

Krater Spirits has become a family project involving everyone. Sustainability as forethought for the forthcoming generations is practised in everyday life: the energy for manufacturing the products and heating the buildings comes from renewable sources.

At the World Spirits Award, double gold was awarded to Kraterfeuer, gold to Bavarian Krater Noster Distilled Dry Gin, and silver to Full Moon Krater Noster Distilled Dry Gin.