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Luding Group: Vodka Tchaikovsky as a high-spirited homage to the famous composer

At the beginning of the 1990s, the modern distillery ‘Fortuna’ was launched in a green field in the south of Russia – in the Krasnodar region, a strip of land with spa resorts and health centres. The distillery has specialised in unusual products, in a region with a particularly green fingerprint. The vodka created in honour of the great Russian composer Tchaikovsky is special. The concept for this exceptional product is comparable with one of his musical scores: the work ‘Swan Lake’ served as an inspiration. Art enthusiasts can thus immerse themselves in the history of Russian estate life in the 19th century. The traditional white and blue colours underline the purity of this vodka.

The technical particularities span a wide quality-orientated spectrum: from the selected wheat, their own well water and the special treatment of the distillate with skimmed milk powder to the crystal-clear filtration with active birch coal. With so much perfectionism and monitoring of the individual production steps, the result is an especially gentle, animating and very typical vodka based on wheat. After the diluting of alcohol and pure distillate, the production process is continued with maturation in steel tanks. The aim is to ‘wed’ both ‘waters’, resulting in an especially harmonious vodka.

At the World Spirits Award 2022, Vodka Tchaikovsky was awarded double gold and honoured as the best vodka with the title ‘Spirit of the Year’.

Schwarze & Schlichte – Brand personalities from Westphalia

The family business Schwarze & Schlichte from Westphalia has been representing the highest quality spirits for the last 345 years with a distinct range of national specialities, regional traditional brands and successful international innovations. This top quality is based on a distilling tradition acquired over centuries which has been passed down over twelve generations. Even today, distilling and maceration still take place at the company’s own distillery where plenty of time and skill are invested. The selection and processing of the best raw materials and continuous control of the production process ensure a consistently high quality. One factor for success is the ongoing brand management in accordance with the specific requirements of the various brand personalities.

Three Sixty Vodka is one of the purest and mildest vodkas in the world. A fourfold distillation process ensures tangible softness and exceptional clarity while the purity of the vodka is all down to the time-consuming “Diamond Filtration” process: the finest filters are used, set with crystals like diamond dust, to remove even the smallest of suspended particles from the distillate. Even the packaging is unique: the facet-cut bottle of pure white shiny glass sets off this premium vodka to perfection. A black velvet label completes the sophisticated design.

The Grappa Bianca from Scavi & Ray is characterised by its full-bodied balanced flavour with powerful and intense aromas of marc. This crystal-clear brandy is soft and deliciously balanced thanks to the exquisite skill of the master distillery. The intense and fruity aroma is reminiscent of the sun-soaked vineyards in Italy.

Both products received a silver medal at the World-Spirits.

Château de Laubade: Armagnac in its purest form

The largest estate in the Armagnac region has been under the ownership of the Lesgourgues family for three generations. The Château is located at the heart of the prestigious Bas Armagnac region and was founded in 1870. It was purchased by the grandfather of the current owners, brothers Arnaud and Denis, in 1974. The family empire grew over the years to include various other vineyards (Bordeaux, Graves and Madiran). The Ugni Blanc (47%), Baco (30%), Colombard (15%) and Folle Blanche (8%) varieties are cultivated over an area of 103 hectares, forming a broad basis for the refinement of the various quality Armagnacs.

Here, the focus has been on sustainable cultivation for more than 40 years, and so some 600 sheep live on the estate, grazing between the rows of vines and providing plenty of natural fertiliser. More than 2,800 casks containing 430 litres are distributed among seven cellars. Only the best Gascony oak wood is used to make the 150 new casks required each year and these are produced at the company’s own barrel-makers. The ‘treasure chamber’ of this traditional company contains excellent products from more than 80 vintage years dating as far back as 1893. The ‘Methuselahs’ – distilled before 1930 – are stored in glass containers in a room that goes by the name ‘Le Paradis’. The ‘heavenly’ products made by this market leader are exported to more than 50 countries and are ambassadors for French lifestyle and culture.

This Master Class Distillery 2022 received gold for Château de Laubade Les Curiosités l'Enchanteur, Château de Laubade Intemporel 12 Ans Armagnac and Château de Laubade Cask Strength 2003, and silver for Château de Laubade Vintage 1973 and Château de Laubade Vintage 1982.

Gebhard Hämmerle Privatbrennerei – Every drop is a treasure

More than 130 years ago, Gebhard Hämmerle laid the foundation stone for the Vorarlberg fine distillation dynasty with the foundation of the Freihof Distillery. In 1952, his grandson and successor decided to produce limited vintage brandies, made from the best fruit of each harvest. Since then, the Gebhard Hämmerle Distillery has been producing crystal-clear delicacies of this brand. “Making good fruit brandies is a solid handcraft; to capture the finest nuances of the aroma and flavour of a fruit in a distillate, is an art.” The traditional distillation processes have been perfected in accordance with this principle for over 50 years. An uncompromising selection process over many stages of production ensures that only the best (‘Vom ganz Guten’) comes into the conical bottles.

Every single harvest batch is processed separately. All bottles display the year, the bottling date and the batch number. Thus the development of the distillates can be followed over the years, which ensures the basis for top class distillates. The best cultivation methods and the best varieties can be chosen over the years of searching for the ideal fruit with a typical aroma and an optimal degree of maturity. Apart from pure pome, drupe, and berry brandies, a gentian distillate compliments the standard range as an Alpine rarity. Great vintage years as well as choice wild fruits are offered in limited batches as ‘Herzstück’ (‘core’ elements). This term is only used for fruit brandy rarities which reach the personal ideals of exceptional quality. Gebhard Hämmerle has fulfilled a dream with this.

The World Class Distillery 2016 was in the spotlight with a great haul: there was double gold for Herzstück Brombeere (blackberry) (World Spirits Award 2016), gold for Vom ganz Guten Vogelbeere (rowanberry), Herzstück Traubenkirsch (black cherry), Vom ganz Guten Enzian (gentian), Herzstück Mispel (medlar) and Vom ganz Guten Williams (Williams pear), silver for Herzstück Himbeere (raspberry), Herzstück Quitte (quince) and Vom ganz Guten Holunder (elderberry).