The Freimeisterkollektiv is a grouping of individualists – an alliance of independent craft distillers and leading bartenders. Our customers should know what they drink. And from whom. The production of our products is subject to complete transparency.
Vodka is often thought of as a spirit that barely reveals its ingredients. The continuous distillation in industrial rectification columns and using countless booster bottoms, has led to a product that is easily referred to as flavor-neutral ethanol. This is often understood as a quality identifier, though in actuality it is boring and lacks principles.
Georg Hiebl distills his grain and pseudo-cereal spirit in small batches in a copper still which was designed for the production of fruit brandies. This is how he creates aromatic spirits that highlight the sensory character of each ingredient.
Quinoa (chenopodium quinoa) is a genus of the family of goosefeet (chenopodium) in the family of foxtails (amaranthaceae). Quinoa is originally from South America, where it has been a main food source for 6.000 years. Georg Hiebl obtains his quinoa, as well as his amaranth, from a organic farm that he’s friendly with in the Mostviertel region.
Nose
Freshly ground poppy seeds, nut aromas.
Taste
Red current and cranberry aromas are at the forefront and then make way for a nutty, fatty mouthfeel.
Finish
During the finish a mixture between fresh yeast dough and bitter citrus notes develops.
Ingredients
Quinoa (chenopodium quinoa) is a plant genus that belongs to the family of goosefeet (chenopodium) in the family of foxtails (amaranthaceae). Georg Hiebl obtains his quinoa, as well as his amaranth, from an organic farm in the Mostviertel region that he's friendly with.
Preparation
Georg Hiebl heats the water to 75 degrees Celsius in the still before adding enzymes to the crushed amaranth. This induces the carbohydrate to split. After 30 minutes, the mash is cooled down to 55 degrees Celsius and the enzymes that induce starch saccharification are added. After this, the yeast is added and the mash is kept at 25 degrees Celsius. The mash ferments for four days and then distilled immediately, in order avoid the formation of negative aromas such as acetic acids. The spirit is distilled in a 150 liter facility. Georg Hiebl switches off the column with the booster bottom for this cereal and pseudo-grain spirit. After the first distillation, the raw distillate has circa 25% alcohol. It comes in at around 80% later.
Georg Hiebl believes that his grain spirit has “a more fatty body” because of the twofold distillation that does not use a column, which then makes it taste more full-bodied and aromatic. During the fine distillation phase, Hiebl separates the high-quality medium run and the tails sensorially. He does not believe that measuring the temperature at this stage would lead to his desired results.
Before it is adjusted to drinking quality with spring water, the fine distillate is stored for several months.
Reichhub, Mostviertel
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Georg Hiebl
Distiller | Mostviertel, Lower Austria
Georg Hiebl comes from a family that has been farming in the Lower Austrian Mostviertel for generations. The over 300-year-old square farm lies between orchards and ancient pear trees.
When Georg Hiebl took over agriculture from his father, he realigned the business, because in the age of industrialized agriculture he saw no future for a small business without specialization. The decision to expand the distillery was shaped by both a passionate interest in flavors and economic considerations. Since 1997 he has dedicated himself exclusively to the distillation of fine spirits.Spurred on by his first successes, he continuously deepened his knowledge of the secret of high-quality distillates and began to experiment with unusual varieties. After several years of experimentation, he quickly rose to become one of the best in his field. He has probably won more awards than anyone else in his guild. Georg Hiebl won the gold or silver medal six times for the overall rating at the Destillata . The IWSC in London named him Boutique Distiller of the Year in 2014.
