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Marder Edelbrände: Germany's best single malt whisky
The fact that they at Marder Edelbrände understand the craft of distilling is as certain as the Amen in church. The fact that they also know how to make damn good whiskies is now finally official. At the German Whisky Award 2024 at the beginning of May, Stefan Marder and his family received the award in the supreme discipline: their single malt whisky Amarone Cask was named the best single malt in Germany.
Buy Marder single malt whisky
- Flavor: dark fruits, soft, spicy, tobacco, dark chocolate
- Barrel type: Amarone red wine barrel
- Age: 7.00
- Flavor: Balanced, spicy, subtle malty sweetness, slightly dry
- Barrel type: Port wine barrel
- Age: 12.00
- Barrel type: Amarone red wine barrel
- Flavor: strong sherry note, toffee, biscuit, roasted almonds, slightly herbal
- Barrel type: Sherry cask
- Flavor: dark fruits, soft, spicy, tobacco, dark chocolate
- Barrel type: Amarone red wine barrel
- Age: 7.00
- Flavor: full-bodied, vanilla, honey, dark chocolate, caramel
- Age: 8.00
- Flavor: full-bodied, vanilla, honey, dark chocolate, caramel
- Age: 8.00
- Flavor: full-bodied, balanced
- Barrel type: Amarone red wine barrel
- Flavor: full-bodied, balanced
In one of the biggest blind tastings the German whisky scene has ever seen, the 7-year-old from Albbruck emerged as the favorite from over 100 entries. "We didn't know beforehand that we would receive an award. We were simply told that it would be great if we won the award and that we have great whiskies," says Stefan Marder.
Unfortunately, he himself was unable to attend the award ceremony. So, without further ado, he sent his son Sebastian to Erbendorf in the Upper Palatinate. The German Whisky Awards were presented there as part of the Festival of German Whisky. "Of course the joy was huge! It makes me proud and of course it is also a huge acknowledgement of our work and the passion we put into our products. Of course, we celebrated late into the night," says the distiller about the award.
The Marder Single Malt Whisky Amarone Cask is aged for 7 years in Amarone red wine casks from Veneto. This is one of the reasons why the whisky from Baden was voted the best single malt in Germany.
The jury's assessment is extremely close - but still shows the wealth of aromas in the Amarone Cask Single Malt. "Red wine, wooden board. Dry cinnamon sticks. Beautifully round & balanced. Delicious, fruit salad. Japanese. Fruit bomb, slightly resinous, dry, complex, pleasant finish." The jury's tasting notes confirm what Stefan Marder himself appreciates so much about his single malt. "In my opinion, its full-bodied character is what makes it so special. Despite its relatively high alcohol content, the Amarone whisky is very round and balanced. It has beautiful fruity components without being too sweet."
And how do you create the best single malt in Germany? Quite simply: by breaking with convention. "I do some things differently than you actually 'should'. For example, we store almost all whiskies at drinking strength, not the usual 60% alcohol. This gives us a faster, more homogeneous ageing process. Although this means we need more casks and space, in my opinion the maturation is simply more beautiful. I don't have to dilute the whisky with 'new' or fresh water after the long storage period, but it matures with it. We also almost exclusively use full aging. This means that the whisky matures in the flavor-giving cask from the very beginning, not just for the finish as is usually the case."
The best single malt in Germany is created by ignoring convention
The Marders have also found a solution to the increased space requirements. While the barrels were previously stored in the fruit hall, the family built their own barrel storage facility in 2019 - directly adjacent to their tasting room. Stefan Marder also prefers to go his own way. Instead of mash, he, his father Edmund and son Sebastian prefer to distil a lautered wort made from 100% barley malt. Lautered wort is the aromatic essence that is produced during the mashing process - and also forms the basis for brewing beer. The Marders obtain this from a local brewery that not only has cult status, but has also won many awards itself.
Stefan Marder prefers to go his own way when it comes to distilling. The awards at the German Whisky Awards 2024 prove him right.
The passionate distiller doesn't do things by halves when it comes to selecting casks either. Like the vast majority of his casks, the Amarone cask in which Germany's best single malt matures comes directly from the winemaker in Veneto. The contact came about through a mutual customer, says Stefan Marder. And so all the pieces of the puzzle came together step by step: From the rather atypical base distillate to the unique seven-year maturation process, until finally the best single malt whisky in Germany ends up in the bottle.
Incidentally, the single malt Amarone Cask is not the only Marder whisky to win an award at the German Whisky Awards. Their 12-year-old single malt came in third place and is also delighted with its rating, which praises the floral and fruity notes of the distillate matured in three different casks. And while the next hit aroma bombs are already maturing in Stefan Marder's barrel store, the distiller himself enjoys a glass of his sherry single cask whisky in peace and quiet. "51.9% alcohol and yet incredibly round and mild with a great fullness on the palate. A real pleasure."
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Katalog & Marketing Managerin
Für mich geht nichts über das Entdecken kleiner Manufakturen. Ob das der Micro Craft Brauer aus Bayern oder die sächsische Brennerei ist, die es bereits seit Jahrzehnten gibt - hauptsache klein, regional verwurzelt und mit Sinn für's Handwerk!
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