150 years of the finest local spirits

The traditional Etter Söhne AG company from Zug has been continually on the market for 150 years. Managing Director Gabriel Galliker-Etter looks back, and reveals why these noble spirits have enjoyed their popularity for so long.

If you want to drink good kirsch (Swiss cherry brandy) , Etter Söhne AG from Zug has a considerable selection of fruit brandies. The distillery is now celebrating its 150th anniversary, and as a steady presence on the market. The demand for the fine spirits is still there, despite the Corona pandemic. Although orders from duty-free shops, for example, have become completely absent, and the fact that there were also fewer order from the gastronomy industry, more private individuals have been shopping for home consumption, says Managing Director Gabriel Galliker-Etter. "For example, many business people who are used to regular business lunches have now have to go without them. Instead, they are treating themselves to a good whisky or a kirsch at home after a good meal." It’s essential to adapt to the needs of customers. "Innovation has always been one of the keys to our success," says Galliker-Etter, who is running the traditional distillery in the fourth generation.

Photo 1: Gabriel Galliker-Etter presents the two new products for the 150th anniversary year in the in-house distillery: the Etter Anniversary Kirsch in a limited-edition retro bottle, and the first, specially produced rum "RUM1823".
Photo 2: During the years of storage, some rum can leak out of barrels in the warehouse of the Etter distillery
Photo 3: The first run from the Etter distillery, “RUM1823", which has been on the market for a week, was stored for seven years in used American Bourbon wooden barrels.

Galliker-Etter has noticed that consumers today drink less, but pay more attention to good quality. "Even with our long-standing customers, we focus more on quality than on quantity. We are represented in many small shops throughout Switzerland, as well as in 18 countries worldwide. But we don't have any large customers," explains Galliker-Etter, who has already completed his apprenticeship as a commercial employee at Etter Söhne AG. The risk is therefore well distributed. But larger establishments, such as the Dallmayr Delicatessen in Munich or the ‘Kaufhaus des Westens’ (KDW: Department store of the West) in Berlin are also on his list of customers, whom he regularly visits himself and whose needs he always takes care of himself.

In the 150 years, the bottle shape has become more unified, after numerous experiments. "We nowadays almost completely dispense with the elaborate, hand-blown bottles in all shapes and colours," says Galliker-Etter. The spirits are also no longer only clear, with darker, more golden hues now being available due to storage in barrels.

Swimming against the current
In general, the development of the world-famous distillery has remained within the family and down-to-earth. The companies sole premises are near the Chollermühle in Zug, and has 23 employees, some of whom work part-time. The quality control is carried out by Galliker-Etter himself. "My father-in-law, 71-year-old Hans Etter, did the quality control with me until last year, and today only looks after a few customers."

These international customers would not be working together with the company today if, during his time as Managing Director from 1974 to 2012, Hans Etter had not carried out exports and established good contacts with foreign customers as part of his vision of marketing Etter worldwide. Galliker-Etter says: "This strategy was not common at that time. The fact that he swam against the current has paid off."

The first rum from Etter
The latest innovations from Etter are the Etter Jubilee Kirsch in a limited-edition retro bottle from the best kirsch vintages from 1995 to 2005. "The kirsch has been stored for 15 to 25 years," explains the managing director proudly.

The second innovation of this year is the first specially-produced rum, "RUM1823", made from sugar cane molasses from Jamaica, and which has been stored on the Chollerstrasse for seven years in used American bourbon wooden barrels. "The rum is a tribute to our ancestors, who had already begun distilling in 1823." In addition, exports of Zug Kirsch to Jamaica, for example, were often paid for with rum.

An anniversary celebration is planned at the company headquarters on Chollerstrasse on the 7^th November. Due to the current developments of the corona pandemic, however, this can only be carried out under special conditions.
Visitors should inform themselves in advance on www.etter-distillerie.ch.