Fruit

🫐Berries & Wild Fruit

Beyond the orchard lies the wild: hedgerow and mountain fruit gathered by hand and distilled in tiny quantities. This is where the connoisseurs go.

The wild and foraged cluster β€” sloe/blackthorn, cornelian cherry (drenovača/dren), rowan (Vogelbeere), elderberry (Holler), rosehip (Γ©glantine), and chequer/sorb (alisier) β€” is the connoisseur's corner. Because most of these are low in sugar, they are usually made as a Geist (macerate β†’ distill) rather than a Wasser Wikipedia: Geist (liquor)).

Alsatian houses like F. Meyer and Nusbaumer, and Austrian houses like Rochelt, are the reference points. Rochelt's rowanberry (Vogelbeere) is a cult bottling.

πŸ–Ό Media cue: Foraged wild fruits β€” sloes, cornelian cherries, rowanberries β€” to convey the artisanal, foraged character.

11 producers making berries & wild fruit brandy

Distillerie F. Meyer

Hohwarth / ChΓ’tenois, Bas-Rhin Β· Alsace

A wide-ranging Alsace distiller reaching deep into wild fruit β€” rosehip, rowanberry, sloe and chequer alongside the classics.

PearPlumCherryRaspberryBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Limited US import

Rochelt

Fritzens, Tyrol Β· Austria

A cult Tyrolean house making uncompromising single-fruit eau-de-vie β€” apricot, quince, sour cherry, and a famed rowanberry.

ApricotQuinceCherryPlumPearRaspberryBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Rare / allocated in the US

Reisetbauer

Kirchberg-Thening, Upper Austria Β· Austria

A modern Austrian distiller prized for estate-fruit apricot, raspberry, pear, apple, plum and rowan/wild-service eaux-de-vie.

ApricotRaspberryPearApplePlumBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Limited US import

Distillery Pfau (Valentin Latschen)

Klagenfurt, Carinthia Β· Austria

A Carinthian distiller of precise single-fruit eaux-de-vie.

PearApricotCherryBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Rare / allocated in the US

Distilleria Walcher

Appiano (Eppan), South Tyrol Β· Italy & South Tyrol

A South Tyrol distiller of Williams pear and fruit acquavite, grappa and liqueurs.

PearBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Pomace (marc / grappa-style)Rare / allocated in the US

Szicsek

TiszafΓΆldvΓ‘r Β· Hungary

A prolific Hungarian house distilling 80-plus products from around 30 different fruits.

PlumApricotPearQuinceBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Rare / allocated in the US

Distillerie MettΓ©

RibeauvillΓ©, Haut-Rhin Β· Alsace

An Alsace house famous for the sheer breadth of its eaux-de-vie β€” from Williams pear and framboise to holly, hay and rose.

PearRaspberryCherryPlumBerries & Wild FruitBotanical & New-WorldWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Limited US import

Greensand Ridge Distillery

Shipbourne, Kent Β· United Kingdom

A sustainable Kent distillery turning surplus orchard and hedgerow fruit into spirit.

ApplePlumBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Rare / allocated in the US

Tayport Distillery

Tayport, Scotland Β· United Kingdom

A family Scottish distillery making eaux-de-vie from Scottish berries and orchard fruit.

RaspberryPlumBerries & Wild FruitGeist (macerate β†’ distill)Wasser (ferment β†’ distill)Rare / allocated in the US

Destillerie HΓ€mmerle

Lustenau, Vorarlberg Β· Austria

A Vorarlberg distiller of Alpine orchard and wild-fruit eaux-de-vie.

PearPlumAppleCherryBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Rare / allocated in the US

Distilleria Capovilla

RosΓ , Veneto Β· Italy & South Tyrol

Vittorio Capovilla's Veneto distillery β€” among the most revered fruit distillers in the world, from Williams pear to wild plum.

PearPlumCherryApricotRaspberryBerries & Wild FruitWasser (ferment β†’ distill)Geist (macerate β†’ distill)Limited US import