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Family of Hounds – Sought and found

Andrea Frigerio and his English wife, Lina, live in Monaco with their two dogs, Spot and Magda, two wonderful additions to the family. Since they started taking the two for walks in town, they have made many new friends. Andrea and Lina used to be red wine drinkers, who spent their holidays in the wine hills of Italy and France. It was only in 2013, while visiting a country estate in England, that they discovered their love for a good G & T. This developed into a passion, and their discussions soon revolved around what it would be like to create their own gin.

They tasted intensively, discarded aromas they didn’t like, and extracted the aromas they did. Together with the master distiller in an old distillery in Piedmont, they created their recipe for the gin: juniper, lemon and orange peel, pink grapefruit, lavender, thyme, cardamom, ginger and coriander. The first three ingredients come from Italy, the rest from Asia. “The juniper is really loud, like a brightly lit disco floor, and the other botanicals dance around it. Together, they are like a lively, attention-seeking dog that can’t sit still.”

In the future, they are looking to establish a small family of spirits, from gin to vodka and from grappa to vermouth – unmistakable in taste, but accessible to everyone. The core of the philosophy is going out with good friends, enjoying a good meal and even better spirits. The first step has already been taken …

At the World Spirits Award, there was double gold for Family of Hounds Gin.

LA SU Gin: Exotic holiday feeling in a glass

Alexander Kayser and Christopher Schuh are true gin lovers and founders of the brand LA SU Gin – a registered brand of Expo Outline Messebau und Event GmbH in Altenstadt, with Alexander Kayser as the managing partner.

After exploring many trains of thought, it was clear to both of them that it had to be exotic. LA SU Gin is a premium handcrafted gin with a hint of fruity mango. Distilled in small batches, traditionally and without additives, it is made in one of the oldest distilleries in Europe. The mango gives it a special freshness and balances the tart notes of the spices perfectly. Next to the mango, LA SU evokes a sense of travel. Enjoy a holiday feeling and discover new taste sensations. The elaborate bottle design reflects a love of detail and certainly leaves an impression.

At the World Spirits Award, bronze was achieved by LA SU *MGO* Natural Mango.

KOFEYOK: Homage to Viennese coffee house culture

The idea in 2019: a perfect New Year’s Eve drink that could be enjoyed all year round. The pilot project in 2020: a one-woman small enterprise as a one-stop shop for everything from the recipe to the end product, including social media, marketing and sales. The ‘witches’ kitchen’ – or small production site – is located in the Favoriten district in Vienna and focuses on high-quality liqueurs on the basis of coffee and tea. To guarantee exceptional taste in an authentic form, the best ingredients are processed by hand in small batches. The small, very refined product range has a look and taste to be proud of.

The coffee liqueur HERR HOFRAT has an impressively subtle smoky and chocolatey tang, coupled with nutmeg. It has a fine sweetness and is slightly caramelly with a lingering finish, like a strong espresso. It is best pure or as a ‘zest’ for traditional tiramisu and summery affogato. The black tea liqueur HERR BOTSCHAFTER is characterised by strong Ceylon black tea and a pleasant hint of citrus. Full-bodied and down to earth, it is delicious in summer chilled with ice or hot by a cosy fireplace on cold days. The third in the aromatic collection is the hibiscus blossom tea liqueur FRAU GRÄFIN, which gives the range a fruity je ne sais quoi – a novelty in this form. With its authentic aroma, soft vanilla and mild hint of citrus in the finish, it refines every cocktail and is enchanting alongside champagne.

On request and in close consultation, handmade coffee liqueurs with a special type of coffee are also created for customers. The result of such a taste journey is a personal secret recipe.

At the World Spirits Award, gold was awarded to Herr Hofrat Coffee Liqueur and Black Tea Liqueur.

Ballast Point Brewing and Spirits – Sporty on many waters

What began in 1996 as a small group of hobby brewers, who simply wanted to make good beer, developed over the years into a successful team under the name of Ballast Point. In 2008, distillation was added, and these days the company with its headquarters in San Diego is an internationally recognised market leader on the brewery and distillation scene, with a product range including more than 40 types of beer and seven spirits. In November 2013, Ballast Point was given the title of ‘California Distillery of the Year’ at the New York International Spirits Competition (NYISC), and Head Distiller Yuseff Cherney is rightly proud of the award, with so much competition around.

Co-founder Jack White adds: “For us, distillation is a natural expansion of brewing. We started with it for the same reason: we wanted to produce what we like drinking. With our spirits, we try to bring our own style into the century-old handicraft of distillation. And it is great that the public like it.” The bottles are also original, with motifs from the world of seafaring and fishing. These refer to the company founders’ second favourite pastime, congenially interpreted by artist Paul Elder, who transforms each idea into wonderful labels. The logo, a sextant, has a reason behind it: the historical navigation instrument was used to compare the angle of the stars to the horizon, to find out the nautical position of the boat. For the company, the sextant is a constant reminder to proceed with the journey, with new ideas and new flavours.

When they are not brewing or distilling, the Ballast Point Brewing and Spirits bosses are sure to be fishing. At other times, two professional sport angling teams train all year and take part in competitions. Talking of competitions: at the World Spirits Award, Ballast Point Spirits landed a good catch: Three Sheets Rum, Devil’s Share Moonshine and Devil’s Share Single Malt Whiskey took gold. Fugu Vodka, Old Grove Gin, Three Sheets Barrel Aged Rum and Devil’s Share Bourbon hooked silver.