Gin and distillery
The premium gin from Obertauern.
Franz Huber jun. is on fire.
On the one hand for tourism and the Hotel Glöcknerin, but also for its award-winning brandies.
The best known of these is his gin "G-Punkt". Mixed as a "Tauern Mule", it delights guests at the Glöcknerin just as much as some of his other gin creations. Distilling is a tradition in the Huber family. And since the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, Franz Jr. distils just like his father, grandfather and great-grandfather.
The Maria Theresa distilling rights
of the Huber'scher Hof.
Strictly speaking, the Maria Theresa distilling rights have been firmly linked to the Huber court for centuries, i.e. since the time of the great Austrian empress. However, this distilling right is and has always been subject to a few technical restrictions. Farmers have only ever been allowed to distil fruit. "Hands off grain & co." was the guideline to prevent farmers from preferring distilled to baked goods and unhappily burdening their families with distilling schnapps instead of providing them with bread.
Fine brandies and more.
So Franz is passionate about distilling. The certified brandy sommelier with extensive sensory training therefore buys fruit in tons rather than kilograms. 1,000 kg of fresh cherries arrive at the farm, or 1,500 kg of fresh Wachau apricots, then another 1,000 kg of pears, apples and raspberries. The fruits of passion and fertility. The distillation process is very precise to ensure that no forbidden fruits are produced.
The first step is an extremely strict quality control. All the fruit is individually hand-picked and sorted by hand. Mold, fruit rot and the like are absolute no-goes. The fruit is then mashed. This extremely clean process is carried out in accordance with strict hygiene regulations. The mash is then fermented for around 14 days until it reaches an alcohol content of around 3-5%.
In the distillation process, which takes around 2.5 hours, a distillate with an alcohol content of around 75% is produced. During this process, the first tranche of the distillate is "turned off". (A little insider tip: the first run is ideal for cleaning windows without leaving streaks). The middle run or the centerpiece is the best of the best, so to speak, that which makes a perfect brandy. The final after-run is often referred to as "fusel", is inferior and is also discarded.
In total, a fruit distillate contains 13 different alcohols, the balance of which ultimately ensures a fine nose and a balanced taste experience.
The G-spot.
g.shakes or g.stirs?
As the name suggests. It's all about the precision landing. And this is exactly what Franz has achieved over many years of tinkering with his flagship product. Quite a lot of juniper and 13 secret herbs are distilled with the base grain and then subjected to prolonged storage before the barrel-aged brew is bottled.
Fruit brandies, on the other hand, are ready to drink immediately. Franz Jr. now produces over 700 liters of ready-to-drink brandies in his distillery every year, which are available for tasting at any time both in the bar at the Hotel Glöcknerin and in the "herzenslust" restaurant.
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