P – as in Production Team Part 2

Are there new distillers at St. Kilian?

Yes. Three young colleagues recently joined us in Rüdenau to work as distillers. Lukas Giesemann is now very familiar with the production plant and has an excellent nose for olfactorily determining the cut points from foreshots to heart and from heart to feints during the second distillation of our low wines in the 6,000-liter copper spirit still. Kilian Mayer trained as a brewer and maltster in a small brewery in Middle Franconia and also joined St. Kilian after completing his training. Kevin Dippel studied beverage technology and started his career as a distiller at St. Kilian directly after completing his bachelor's degree.

https://youtu.be/pqcNWvDLc10

Is St. Kilian Distillers also a training company?

Yes! We recently welcomed Mirko Knorr, our first apprentice in production. During his practical training as a distiller, Mirko will go through all stages of whisky production, thereby deepening and expanding his theoretical knowledge from the accompanying vocational school. In this way, St. Kilian is, so to speak, training its own young talent, which is, of course, an excellent thing.

Who are the Master Distillers at St. Kilian?

Mario Rudolf is a trained carpenter, brewer, and maltster, as well as a qualified brewing engineer, and Master Distiller at St. Kilian. In his additional role as Master Blender, he is also responsible for compiling new bottlings. He is supported by Master Distillers Lars Baethcke and Zoltán Fódi. Lars Baethcke, a trained distiller and master distiller since 2017, helped build up a whisky brand during his many years at another distillery in the Westerwald and ended up at St. Kilian due to his love for whisky. Hungarian Zoltán is a trained food technologist specializing in brewing and distilling and, like Mario, has been with St. Kilian from the very beginning.

What do the Master Distillers do?

The three Master Distillers form the core team at St. Kilian. They are primarily responsible for defining the next steps in production and - very importantly - for planning the next products. In addition, they respond to raw material fluctuations with recipe adjustments and continuously develop the plant.

Are new products at St. Kilian decided as a team?

Absolutely. The management and marketing define the framework conditions for a new bottling. The three Master Distillers then decide together which whisky will ultimately be bottled. St. Kilian's internal collective intelligence, including the expertise of Andreas Kreser – Director of Communication & Brand Development – and Dr. Heinz Weinberger – Communication & Science – is also gladly utilized. The final decision on the production side lies with Master Distiller & Blender Mario Rudolf.

What other points are important in production?

Ongoing quality monitoring by all employees at every step of production is immensely important. This also includes determining the alcohol content of whisky, new make, and liqueurs through sample distillation. Furthermore, not only during the filling and emptying of barrels, all aspects of German customs require a high sense of responsibility from each individual employee.

Are St. Kilian's successes measurable?

Yes! Our whiskies and liqueurs have been awarded over 200 gold medals at the most renowned competitions around the globe. In addition, awards such as "World-Class Distillery," "Distillery of the Year," and "Whisky of the Year" attest to the international top level St. Kilian has reached.

What is the secret of St. Kilian's success?

A highly talented and harmonious team is a basic prerequisite for the production of innovative and high-quality whisky and liqueur bottlings. At St. Kilian, we continuously develop to meet high quality standards in the future.