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The Shropshire Gin Company – Passion and a fighting spirit for gin

The company Van den Berg is newly founded, at the end of 2019, with an online shop also opening at the same time. “Our shop is simple, but very aesthetic and reflects what our spices are: elegant, colourful, tasteful and incredibly versatile. It invites you to go where discoveries and journeys never end. For us there are no boundaries here, because spices have never known any either,” is how marketing manager Fabian Held explains it. The passion for fine aromas and exceptional tastes is evident in around 250 spices and herbs from A to Z – available pure and as the finest blends according to their own recipes. All of this can be found at the manufacturing site in Graz, with direct sales, a sampling room, a lounge and a production hall.

And then there are herbs and spices whose aroma only really unfolds in a dissolved form such as in gin or vermouth, because alcohol helps even the finest aromas to develop. The London Dry Gin presents itself with a distinct juniper fragrance, fine herbal nuances with rosemary and others, as well as elegant hints of fruit and a pinch of citrus and peach. The Distiller’s Cut Gin has a surprising aroma that evokes lemon, lime and bergamot, a citrus fruit that grows wild in the south of Italy. The basis for the Wermut rosso is a Zweigelt from the highest altitude vineyard in Styria. The gin used complements the wine with a fine tanginess.

At the World Spirits Award, there was silver for Van den Berg London Dry Gin, Van den Berg Distiller’s Cut and Van den Berg Wermut rosso.

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.

Stock Polska – Prestige products with history

Polmos Lublin (known today as Stock Polska) was founded by the industrialist Emil Plage in Lublin in 1906 and was able to survive both world wars and the communist state leadership. The company was nationalised in 1948 and re-privatised in 2001. It traded on the Warsaw Stock Exchange until 2005 and was sold in 2006. The new owners, Oaktree Capital Management, purchased the spirits division from Eckes Stock in 2007 and thereby laid the foundations for the current Stock Spirits Group. The company has its headquarters in Luxembourg, its service centre in Great Britain and its production sites in the Czech Republic, Italy and Poland.

Stock dates back to the year 1884 when Lionello Stock founded a beverages business in Trieste. He purchased a distillery in 1920 in what is currently part of the Czech Republic with the aim of tapping into new markets. This was followed by distilleries, bottling plants and warehouses in Italy, Austria, Poland, Hungary and Yugoslavia. In the 1920s, Stock was one of the biggest companies of its kind in Europe.

After an absence of 70 years, Stock returned to Poland and began to manufacture at the historic site of Lublin, 150 kilometres south-east of Warsaw. Intensive investment led to the creation of the most modern distillery in Poland and a leadership position on the vodka market. Poland’s most popular flavoured vodka is produced here: Zoladkowa Gorzka.

Lots of Stock products are produced by traditional recipes. These classical brands appeal to connoisseurs all over the world. In return, work is constantly being done on innovations that correspond to modern tastes and new drinking cultures. Quality standards are constantly upheld in both areas, of course.

The quality of the products was recognised at the World Spirits Award with a gold medal for the Orkisz Spelt Vodka.