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Roust Hungary: Affordable luxury on the spirits market

Roust was founded in 1992 by the Russian businessman Roustam Tariko and quickly developed into a leading business group in the sale of premium spirits brands. One of the world’s leading vodka producers, the company is present in more than 80 countries. Roust owns production plants and distribution centres in Hungary, Russia and Italy. The comprehensive portfolio includes the flagship vodka brands of Russian Standard, Green Mark, Parliament and Zhuravli.

Thanks to its extensive knowledge in sales and marketing and its commitment to responsible alcohol consumption, Roust Hungary has become the leading supplier on the domestic spirits market. The largest premium spirits company in Hungary also sells the Royal, Zubrówka, Russian Standard, Gancia, Grants, Jägermeister and Metaxa brands.

For years, Royal Vodka has maintained its position as the most popular and well-known vodka brand in Hungary, and also remains market leader in terms of volume and turnover. Royal Vodka is produced using natural ingredients, from the grain to the well water, which contributes to its mild taste.

At the World Spirits Award, there was gold for Royal Original Vodka, and bronze for Royal Raspberry Liqueur.

Manufaktur Jörg Geiger: Dedication and perfection – Swabian virtues

Jörg Geiger, autodidact and cook, discovered his fascination for meadow fruit and producing drinks with them at an early age at his parents’ family enterprise. This led to a deep passion when it came to old types of apples and pears, their cultivation and processing. Sustainable, nature-preserving work is what drives him as a constant motivation. His focus is on preserving healthy soil, ancient trees and traditional types, building a new appreciation for the harvest and making meadow orchard owners proud once more. He also conveys this in monthly YouTube videos.

All the products bear testimony to originality, craftsmanship and dedication. From alcohol-free to complex and even rather crazy recipes, there is something to suit every taste. The production facility has developed an exciting and varied spectrum of meadow fruit specialities through Swabian ambition and diligence, as well as through Jörg Geiger’s skills.

FRUCHTVOL. liqueurs as diverse as the seasons are new to the range. Double-distilled grape brandies are combined with fully ripe fruit and balanced by hand with herbs, flowers and spices. One can choose the spring-like cherry liqueur, refined with sloe, dandelion and elderberry. Or perhaps the summery quince liqueur, with hay flowers, acacia blossoms and garden herbs. There is also the autumnal blackcurrant liqueur, with lavender blossoms and coriander, followed by the intense wintery damson liqueur with cinnamon, cloves and star anise.

At the World Spirits Award, there was gold for Fruchtvol. Johannisbeerlikör (blackcurrant liqueur), silver for Fruchtvol. Quittenlikör (quince liqueur), and bronze for Fruchtvol. Kirschenlikör (cherry liqueur).

Achim Lohner: Traditional enterprise with a future

Founded in 1912, the Lohners boast an impressive growth story of 110 years of a family bakery chain. Almost 170 bakeries with over 2,000 employees in Germany sell fresh baked goods, including cakes, to more than 60,000 customers daily. Sustainability concepts have always been considered and observed throughout the long company history. Thinking of tomorrow already today is not an empty slogan here but a practiced company philosophy. This ranges from using local suppliers, reducing energy consumption by using the latest technologies to cooperating with sustainable agriculture.

The new managing director Marc Kranz has now gone one step further. He has combined his longstanding fascination with gin with the reduction of returns from the branches. The crust of one of the top breads of the bakery, the ‘Raubritter’ (robber knight), has been used as a basis for the high-quality London Dry Gin ‘The Bread Knight’. Together with the Hubertus Vallendar Distillery, Marc Kranz and Mario Vallendar have created a unique product, as it were – a taste journey lined with juniper trees and fresh bread, accompanied by various botanicals. The partiality to traditional and artisanal procedures, coupled with great dedication, has resulted in a unique experience.

At the World Spirits Award, gold was awarded to The Bread Knight London Dry Gin.