Elsburn
| Elsburn | |
|---|---|
 Main entrance to the Hammerschmiede distillery |
|
| country | Lower Saxony |
| region | resin |
| Type | Paint |
| status | active |
| owner | Hercynian Distilling Co. |
| Founded | 1985/2002 |
| founder | Karl-Theodor & Alexander Buchholz |
| Water source | Staufenberg spring |
| Washstill (s) | 2 × 700 l |
| Spiritstill (s) | 1 × 800 l |
| Production volume | 30,000 lpa p. a. |
| Website | www.hercynian-distilling.de |
Elsburn (Eigenschreibwweise: ELSBURN - marketed until September 2019 under the name of The Glen Els ) is the most famous Harz single malt whiskey , made by "Hercynian Distilling Co. / forge", a factory for spirits and distillery for whiskey in Lower Saxony resin .
Surname
The name The Glen Els - Harz single malt whiskey, like the Elsburn brand, is derived from the geographical location of the spirits manufacture on Elsbach, in Zorge .
history
Zorge is located in today's district of Göttingen (Lower Saxony), around 85 km south of Braunschweig . The Hammerschmiede distillery and manufactory was founded in 1985 in the old hammer forge in Wieda . The old hammer mill, which today houses part of the whiskey barrels, was built between 1250 and 1270 by monks and their assistants from the nearby Walkenried monastery and belonged to the monastery until 1593. Afterwards the property passed to the Dukes of Braunschweig and Lüneburg, whereby the building was used and administered by the Wiedaer Hütte. In 1873 the blacksmith's business was stopped and between 1873 and 1895 a cooperage was set up in the building. In 1895, the hammer forge became the property of the family that runs what is now the factory. This is where the history of the Harz single malt began with the first cask fillings in 2002.
In 2005 the company moved to the old Kurhaus in Zorge, which has since been used as a distillery with warehouse and sales center. The hammer forge in Wieda now serves as a barrel store.
With a production capacity of 40,000 liters per year, the manufactory is one of the largest producers of single malt whiskey in Germany and on the European mainland. At the same time, the manufactory, with more than 20,000 visitors annually, is an important destination for tourist activities in the Harz Mountains. Since 2007 the Glen Els has been represented in the Malt Whiskey Yearbook with an annual article. Products such as "The Journey" and "The Alrik by The Glen Els", as well as single cask bottlings with ratings of up to 95.5 points in Jim Murray's Whiskey Bible and multiple awards in gold at the World Whiskey Awards are also featured in specialist publications and reviews internationally regarded as Germany's best single malts. In 2012 and 2013 there were Liquid Gold Awards and a placement among the top 20 distilleries worldwide, the 2019 World Whiskey Awards.
In 2019, the distillery renamed the Glen Els product to Elsburn , ending litigation with the Scotch Whiskey Association. This had brought an action before the Hamburg Higher Regional Court and won the second instance that the name component Glen was reserved for Scottish Scotch whiskey .
production
The Hercynian single malt whiskey is double -distilled in the classic pot still process with copper kettles using the raw brandy fine brandy method and stored in various oak barrels with a volume of 38 l to 500 l. The raw material is barley malt , partly roasted or wood smoked, as well as peated (peaty).
The Mashtun (mash kettle) has a capacity of 0.25 tons and is usually used twice a day, the four washbacks (fermentation vats) made of oak have a maximum nominal volume of 3,050 liters each.
In total, an average of 10,000 liters of wash are produced per week for the subsequent distillation.
The fermentation time is given as 96–120 hours and is therefore comparatively long. An alcohol content of 8–9% vol. reached. Top-fermenting M1 dry yeast is used for fermentation.
In comparison, an essential distinguishing feature of the Distillery is shown in the barrel storage - experiments are being carried out with Marsala, Cognac, Sherry, Madeira, Malaga, Grand Cru and Port wine barrels of various sizes, as well as with German Oak Quarter Casks made from Black Forest sessile oak. At the same time, a storage method designed for higher evaporation and new flavors is used, in which the temperature in the barrel storage is generally inconsistent and, depending on the weather, between 5 ° C and more than 30 ° C. However, the high level of air exchange in the warehouses contributes significantly more to the "angel's share". The evaporation rates are around 4 to 10% per year.
Products
- Journey - 43% vol.
- Ember - gently woodsmoked - 45.9% vol.
- Distillery Edition - Sherry matured - 45.9% Vol.
- Special bottlings from single barrels
- WillowBurn - lightly smoked
- The Alrik - heavily woodsmoked
- X - non-woodsmoked - 49.6% vol. (Cask strength): The first 10-year-old Glen Els (distilled in January and May 2006, bottled in July 2016) from two PX sherry barrels with an edition of 750 bottles.
- Emperor's Way - peated
The storage time is currently given as an average of 5 to 10 years, sometimes longer. So far there have been around 300 different single cask bottlings and special editions from the distillery. The taste varies considerably due to the different distillates and barrels. In general, a mild but complex basic taste is seen as defining the style.
See also
Web links
- Official website
- The Glen Els-Story - The secret of the Harz single malt whiskey - Gourmet magazine
Individual evidence
- ↑ Whiskey from the heart of Germany. Retrieved October 15, 2019 .
- ↑ Why Hammerschmiede - how it all began In: hammerschmiede-spirituosen.de , accessed on March 22, 2018.
- ↑ 2005–2010 - Spirituosenmanufaktur Hammerschmiede In: hammerschmiede-spirituosen.de , accessed on March 21, 2018.
- ↑ cf. NDR television report Lower Saxony - 19:30
- ↑ cf. The Harz Mountains - MERIAN live! P. 139
- ↑ cf. Ingvar Ronde et al .: Malt Whiskey Yearbook 2008-2013 .
- ↑ cf. Whiskey Bible 2013 p. 356.
- ↑ World Whiskies Awards 2019 - Winners: Best German Single Malt. Retrieved June 15, 2019 (UK English).
- ↑ World Whiskies Awards 2019 - Winners: Best German Single Cask Single Malt. Retrieved June 15, 2019 (UK English).
- ↑ THE GLEN ELS becomes ELSBURN In: whiskyexperts.net , September 26, 2019, accessed on December 18, 2019.
- ^ The distillery. Retrieved June 15, 2019 .
- ↑ cf. Whiskey Ambassador Spring 2–2009, p. 40f.
- ↑ cf. Whiskey Guide Germany 2010 p. 32.