Young and adventurous
When Florian Faude's parents bought a small farm in Bötzingen am Kaiserstuhl, it also had distilling rights. Normally you let something like that fall into disrepair and don't bother with it anymore. But the old firing pot held a great fascination for the teenager. At that time, fruit brandies were at most something for the elders. It's almost impossible to get more dusty. Especially such "guys" (and I mean that in a positive sense) like Florian Faude have been breathing new life into this category, which was believed to be almost dead, for several years now. With a lot of quality awareness and innovation, we have succeeded in winning over young bartenders for fruit distillates. In German-speaking countries you can find more and more great drinks like the quince crusta or the rhubarb fizz. But it was a long, stony path that Faude has not yet come to the end of. After all, bottles of Faude Feine Brande are now in the upscale gastronomy and bartenders in Germany and abroad are into gherkin spirit and beetroot spirit! Who would have thought? Great - keep it up!
Faude's next trick - grain is on the agenda
A new distillery
In 2016, Faude moved his company from his parents' farm in Bötzingen am Kaiserstuhl to the nearby industrial area. There simply wasn't enough space.
He has set up his business on 400 square meters and hopes to be able to use the hall for as long as possible. In 2017 he invested in a new distillery, with which he is now able to produce larger quantities.
So it had paid off to reinvent fruit brandies and offer them mainly in bars instead of restaurants. This is the only place where the classics are treated in an innovative way and a category thought dead is given new life.
He also pursues a special hobby for his distillery: tracking down old earthenware containers that are ideal for aging spirits... The man knows what is good and what he wants!
The Citrus Connection
Citrus spirits are becoming more and more popular because they are often used in bars for cocktails. Now it is so warm in the Kaiserstuhl that lemons are already growing, but the terroir in Italy is probably more suitable for it. In addition, with the bergamot there is also a fruit that offers a much more exciting aroma than the lemon.
Reason enough for Florian Faude to contact a Sicilian citrus farmer, get to know him on site, visit the plantations and then import the fruit himself. He then processes the blood oranges, mandarins and bergamots promptly in his own company. The clear distillates are incredibly natural and authentic. A pleasure to have something like this in a glass.
