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2B Hemp Gin: Styrian gin experience

Two visionaries, Armin Breinl (doctor, drink creator, musician) and Wolfgang Thomann (gin maker), have created a completely new gin experience with real hemp powder: 2B HEMP GIN (inspired by AEIJST). On 17th November 2018, the two invited guests to the first tasting of 2B HEMP GIN in the AEIJST GIN distillery in St. Nikolai in the Sausal Valley.

Made from organic juniper berries, this innovative gin has an impressive, mild and fruity taste and a typical hemp note. Due to its unique aroma, it not only tastes good neat, but also creates a ‘wow’ effect in cocktails – as proven in the long drink Styrian Pale Gin AEIJST refined with 2B HEMP.

For thousands of years, hemp has been grown as a valuable plant, be it for rope, fabric, paper or as an active ingredient in ointments and tinctures. Hemp has always been highly valued for its medicinal properties, yet recently has been demonised as an addictive drug and has suffered under its ensuing prohibition, originating in the USA. These days hemp is regaining importance and is being used more as a luxury food as well as in medicine as a therapeutic agent.

The Lifestyle Trading company, run by Armin Breinl, is an innovative beverage producer, which is already known amongst trade professionals for its sugar-free ‘func- tional fruit drinks’. The drinks have a high fruit content (more than 50 per cent) and additional natural, vital substances and have an energising, relaxing and regenerative effect.

At the World Spirits Award, there was silver for 2B HEMP GIN.

MBG International Premium Brands – Brands with added value

“We Love Liquids.” This slogan has accompanied MBG on its worldwide path of success since it was founded in 1993 under the name P.O.S. Marketing + Vertrieb GmbH: Strong brands have been established around the world in nearly 60 countries, with innovative own brands, renowned retail brands, great ideas and a lot of energy. With over 250 employees, the MBG Group currently generates over € 200 million and, every year, more than a million hectolitres are produced. The portfolio in Germany includes 12 own brands and 6 retail brands (from non-alcoholic drinks to low proof drinks to wines & spirits) for 90,000 customers.

“Our recipe for successful brands is the mixture of passion, conviction and knowledge of the market. If all goes well, names and products become new worlds which consumers love. Success is not always predictable, which means that courage is needed above all. The right moment has to be found and hard work put in, just like with a hit single: some are one hit wonders while others become classics.” Little can be added to this definition from Managing Director Andreas W. Herb. From the MBG Group headquarters in Paderborn, a great deal of expertise makes successful brands, tailored to the respective target group and the market segment. Many brands that are well known on shop shelves and in the gastronomy sector have played a role in the history of the company.

Participation in the World Spirits Award yielded gold for Dos Mas Nasty Nuts Shot.

Kesselbrüder: World-first from Vienna

At the beginning of December 2018, Florian Koller, Thomas Tirmantinger and Achim Brock presented ‘Klimt Wien Gin’. They wanted a memorial for the Art Nouveau painter and to capture the way of life at the turn of the century in a bottle. “We have the philosophy, we have the ingenious product and we have the patron saint of the creative Viennese eroticism: Gustav Klimt.” This is how Achim Brock describes the idea behind the gin creation. Florian Koller continues: “Gustav Klimt represents the intellectual, charming, creative, deca-dent and erotic Vienna from the past and the modern day. We absolutely wanted to focus on that.” Thomas Tirmantinger enthuses on the effect of the superplants involved: “Lady’s mantle is one of our favourites, this plant that is indigenous to Europe has a relaxing effect on the female lower abdomen, the stinging nettle stimulates blood circulation in the genitals, and the superplant, the bishop’s cap cactus from Japan, increases libido and semen production in men.”

13 months of intensive product development were necessary to create the first ‘functional erotic gin in the world’. Eight highly dosed, strongly aphrodisiac botanicals were added to the basic recipe using a special mac-eration procedure whereby the gin gains in maturity, potency, expression and eroticism. The mostly indige-nous botanicals can be clearly recognised, produced in a special infusion procedure.

At the World Spirits Award, there was silver for Wien Gin and Klimt Wien Gin.

Fermentorium Distilling Co.: Creativity from Canada

It was the creative minds from Phillips Brewing and Malting Co. in Victoria that had the idea for Fermentorium. It is a place where spirits are created according to special recipes. The basic distillates for the gin are made in a traditional British copper pot still from the 1920s – endearingly called Old George – and refined in a modern distillery of German production. In British Columbia, herbs are gathered by hand and botanicals are cultivated, carefully selected for Stump Coastal Forest Gin, so that the gin reflects the origins of its ingredients – from the craggy coastline to the old forests.

Vancouver Island produces high-quality barley that is processed in Phillips Brewing’s own malt factories. Through the use of barley that is cultivated just 15 minutes away, local farmers are supported and emissions from malt transport are reduced. Ultimately, it is possible to control the quality of the end product better. There are only a handful of malthouses in North America and Phillips Brewing is proud to be the only Craft Brewer in Canada that malts its own barley. Small Talk Whisky continues the tradition of only using barley cultivated on Vancouver Island. Bourbon was originally stored in the barrels made of American and French oak, which were then filled at the distillery at the beginning of 2016.

At the World Spirits Award, silver was awarded to Discovery Street Dry Citrus Gin and Stump Coastal Forest Gin, and bronze to Small Talk Whisky.