Simply mentioning the country of Italy evokes thoughts of scrumptious food and superb wines. Of course, the country is also known for traditional spirits and liquors such as Limoncello, Amaretto, Sambuca, and many more. Tucked away in the countryside of central Italy is one of the nation’s top distilleries, Distillerie Tenuta Collesi, a company known by connoisseurs for quality spirits, like the famous Italian grappa.
Since first founding the prize-winning distillery, the greatest motivation has always been the constant desire to create only the finest products, carefully following their own unique recipes for traditional handcrafted spirits. Now, the distillery is taking their talent for making exquisite liquors and turning out a new line of products, Gin and Vodka Collesi, both with the distinction of being made exclusively in their distillery in Italy.
The company is located in Apecchio, a typical Italian village wedged between the regions of Marche, Umbria and Tuscany. Distillerie Tenute Collesi was founded in 2000 and then went on to create its own top notch brewery producing craft beers, Fabbrica della Birra Tenute Collesi, in 2007.
Collesi’s latest spirits are products which unmistakeably reflect the countryside where they are made, with ingredients grown directly on the distillery’s grounds and blended with the pure mountain water from nearby Monte Nerone. Gin Collesi is made with carefully selected barley and infused with juniper berries typical of the Italian Apennines and even the rinds of oranges and lemons. What makes this gin truly iconic is its decisive, complex and balanced flavors coupled with the infusion of the sweetness of a locally grown cherry known as the visciole. The exclusive four-bottle pack even includes a jar of these special cherries and a cocktail book for creating unique drinks.
The vodka is a refined blend of grain, grapes and wine, which is slowly and carefully handcrafted. The alcohol is brought to extremely low temperatures for at least 56 hours before being slowly warmed to just above zero, at which point it is filtered eight times and then blended with water from the local mountain springs. The final product is a vodka which is absolutely clear with a delicate scent of fruit and aromas of grains and grapes which give way to a flavor that is soft and harmonious.
Collesi’s eye towards taking care of every minimal detail extends from its liquors right to the elegant and contemporary design of their bottles, which are distinctive for their tall, slender shapes adorned with sculpted droplets at the base. These identical bottles come in white for the vodka and in black for the gin.