World-Spirits Online Guide Abo – order now

Georg Hemmeter – XUXU, Escorial, SILLA EL FUERTE

Georg Hemmeter – strawberry drinks with exceptional flavour guaranteed

The name Georg Hemmeter – a company of the Underberg Group – stands for innovative spirits, in particular the XUXU range. The fresh and fruity strawberry drink contains 66 percent fruit plus crystal-clear vodka, rounded off with a dash of lime. The harmony between the sweetness of the fruit and just 15% alcohol by volume is created using a special production method. XUXU Ten, the little luxury in a 250 ml aluminium bottle with only 10% alcohol by volume, is dressed to party – it is still relatively new to the market, yet is already at home in all the world’s top party venues.
XUXU can be served in so many different ways: chilled, neat, on crushed ice, as a dessert topping, with sparkling wine or with other mixers – XUXU tastes heavenly and offers fresh and fruity pleasure. Welcome to Berrydise!

Initially the absolute top star in Greece, XUXU is now also number 1 in Russia, and extremely popular in Turkey and Italy too.


XUXU Strawberry & Vodka Drink and XUXU Ten won Gold at the World Spirits Award 2014.

Australian Distilling: Inspired by famous cities

The founder, Michael Hickinbotham, is one of the second generation of the family of distillers who helped shape Australia’s wine and spirits industry. Together with Dr. Graham Jones as Master Distiller he has created unique recipes for gin, inspired by the time he spent living and working in Australia.

The spirits have strong botanic signatures with regional and seasonal ingredients. All the way to the bottle, everything is especially designed with a particular city in mind, and each gin is distilled there in order to capture the city’s ‘spirit’.

The label on Adelaide Gin reflects the copper on which the foundations of the city stand. In the aroma, flowery notes of rose and lavender join forces with spices such as cardamom, juniper, coriander and nutmeg. Sydney Gin stands for the flora of this sunny region and its lively city vibe. The aroma carriers are lemon myrtle, lime peel and orange. The city’s stylish Art Deco architecture is captured in the bottle design, with images of Sydney Harbour Bridge and a hint of the elegance of the 1920s. Perth Gin was launched four days before the first Australian Gin Day (23rd November 2019). Distilled in beautiful Margaret River, warming boronia is paired with lemon myrtle. The golden label is a nod to the gold rush and sunshine, blue skies and the ocean. Brisbane Gin was introduced at the same time, with the freshness of kaffir limes and finger limes as well as ginger. Pink, chestnut brown and gold represent the youth of the ‘River City’, the celebration of nature, sunshine and good company.

At the World Spirits Award, there was gold for Adelaide Gin, Melbourne Gin, Sydney Gin and Perth Gin, and silver for Brisbane Gin.

Antonino Riggio - The Wonderful World of Plants

Antonino Riggio founded his company only in 2005; the business grew out of an extensive passion for lupins. The plant with its large, colourful flowers grows wild in Central Europe and elsewhere in the world, and they make a favourite meal for bees. Gardeners employ lupins to improve the soil, cattle farmers know them to be valuable fodder plants. The cultivated species are referred to as sweet lupins; they contain fewer alkaloids than their wild counterparts. The seeds, which contain almost 50% protein, would seem to provide a successful alternative to soy. Clinical studies have shown other positive medicinal effects; substances derived from lupins can protect cells and counteract cancer, as well as help control cholesterol levels.

Plant amateur Riggio followed this up with another innovative idea in 2006. He developed a bitter named "Ginseno", processed from ginseng, aromatic herbs and medicinal plants. Ginseno is available in different flavours; Naturale, Amabile, Alla Menta, and Alla Manna. The latter contains a sap extract from the Manna Ash (Fraxinus ornus), which grows in Madonie, a nature reserve near Castelbuono. The dried sap contains mannite, a sugar substitute also used in pharmacology.

In future, Riggio plans further Ginseno variants, flavoured with Agrumi di Sicilia (oranges and mandarins), almonds and cactus fruit. All products are labelled "APLCEFALU" which refers to their origin: the town of Cefalù on the Northern coast of Sicily.

The trip to Carinthia to the World Spirits Award paid off: the bitter Ginseno alla Manna received a gold medal.