As of: March 28, 2024, 7:58 a.m
By: Sina Alonso Garcia
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Agave spirit made in the Ländle: Selva Negra founder Laurin Lehmann (left) and Sebastian Dresel. © Selva Negra (photomontage BW24)
Tequila is the fastest growing spirit in the world. A start-up from Baden-Württemberg has recognized the trend and is producing the first German version of the cult drink in the Black Forest. In an interview with IPPEN.MEDIA, founder Laurin Lehmann explains everything you need to know.
Stuttgart – The international popularity of tequila and mezcal has increased significantly in recent years. As demand increases, some countries outside of Mexico have begun producing spirits from agave. In Germany, however, the market is still poorly developed. Two start-up founders from Baden-Württemberg want to change that.
Around two years ago they decided to bring the first German agave spirit onto the market. The result was the product “Selva Negra” – Spanish for: Black Forest. It tastes like real tequila, but for geographical reasons it can't be called that. In an interview with
BW24
from
IPPEN.MEDIA,
managing director Laurin Lehmann (35) from Stuttgart talks about the origins of the spirit, production and a won legal dispute with Jägermeister.
Would you like to briefly introduce yourself and your business partners?
Yes very much. I have actually always been active in the beverage industry. I did my training at Stuttgarter Hofbräu in the commercial area and then completed a degree in retail management. After a total of eleven years at Stuttgarter Hofbräu, which has since been taken over by the Radeberger Group, I was headhunted by a small start-up in the energy drink sector in 2019 and was supposed to be responsible for building the brand for southern Germany. The company is called Silver Arrow. I also met my current business partner Sebastian Dresel (37) there. He came from Diageo, one of the largest spirits producers in the world.
What happened then?
I came from a trip with my best friends and had an idea in the spirits sector that I approached Sebastian with. However, he said what he found much more exciting were tequila and mezcal. Personally, I thought of tequila, which is probably what 90 percent of Germans know, as a party drink with a red hat, salt and lemon. Sebastian said that there are great products made from 100 percent agave, premium tequilas and mezcals in Mexico.
In the end, I just spent two or three weeks learning the ropes, getting different products, tasting and testing them - and was very impressed by the different barrel storage and different agaves. The next question we asked ourselves was: Do we just want to import something from Mexico and market it here? Somehow we didn't think it was that great.
Attractive design: The Selva Negra logo features a mythical creature made up of a deer, bull and human with a Black Forest Bollenhut. © Selva Negra
So the question quickly became: How can such a product be manufactured in Germany?
Yes. We thought about why no one before us had produced the spirit in Germany. There is whiskey from Germany, gin from Germany - all kinds of spirits are produced in this country. The Black Forest in particular, which has the highest density of distilleries in the world, has a lot of great distillers. Since we both had always worked in the beverage industry, but are not trained distillers and of course don't have the equipment, we needed a distiller who could implement our ideas. So we asked around on the network.
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Who was recommended to you then?
Four people independently recommended Florian Faude (39) to us. He's been doing this his whole life now. The distillery was practically born in his cradle because his parents bought an old farmhouse in the Black Forest with a distillery. As a trained winemaker and distiller, he produces classic fruit brandies, but also other high-quality spirits. He has made a name for himself in the scene. So we approached him and told him about the idea. He was immediately impressed. From then on it was clear to us: the journey would continue as a threesome. Then it went into the development phase.
Founding trio: Sebastian Dresel, Sebastian Faude and Laurin Lehmann (from left). © Selva Negra
Your product is made from agave. Where does the plant grow?
Mexico is the only country in the world where agave is currently grown commercially. The flora and fauna there are particularly ideal. It takes seven to eight years for an agave to be ready for harvest and then weighs around 100 kilograms. Under certain circumstances it can even weigh up to two tons. Tequila is currently the fastest-growing spirit in the world and has tripled in sales volume and sales volume over the past three years. Celebrities like Dwayne Johnson and George Clooney have their own brands and are already very successful with them. The trend is clearly visible, which is why agaves are also grown outside of Mexico. However, for a spirit to be called tequila or mezcal, it must be harvested, processed, distilled and bottled in Mexico.
Where are agaves grown other than Mexico?
Especially in South America, as there is similar flora and fauna there. But agave fields are also being planted here in Europe, for example in Austria. Little is known about the quality and scalability of European agaves. Until then, we will source the raw material from Mexico - but as an extract. In concrete terms, this means: the agave is cooked, pressed, the juice is collected and concentrated. And we then bring it to us in the Black Forest in a container. We process this raw material with spring water from the Black Forest and German wine yeast into an agave wine.
How is the processing carried out?
We start with the fermentation, which takes around six to eight weeks until the yeast has converted the fructose into alcohol and the wine is ready. This has 10 to 12 percent alcohol by volume and no residual sugar, which in turn is important for the quality and taste. The whole thing is then distilled twice, so we first make a raw spirit and then a fine spirit. During the second distillation, we use maceration to incorporate the aroma of Black Forest spruce and the smoke of local woods, which are evident in the taste of our product. This is intended to be reminiscent of mezcal, which, in contrast to tequila, is more of an artisanal product.
When we have completed the second distillation process, we adjust the product to 46% volume - so it is a very strong spirit. We mix the distillate with water to reduce the alcohol content so that it is drinkable. Finally, we store the agave spirit in a steel tank for almost six weeks so that the alcohol and water mix perfectly with each other and our Selva Negra can mature, producing the ideal taste. Then it is bottled and goes out into the world.
How much can we then speak of?
In the first batch we had 2,000 bottles. We are currently in the fourth batch and the quantity has increased from batch to batch.
You recently won a lawsuit against Jägermeister. It was about the logo, right?
Exactly, it was about brand design. The Jägermeister company felt that its brand was somehow threatened. There was a legal dispute, but Jägermeister's lawsuit was dismissed by the Hamburg district court in March last year. Jägermeister lost in the first instance, but the company has now filed an appeal.
Also popular in the form of a cocktail: Selva Negra with grapefruit juice on ice. © Selva Negra
But aren't there several in the industry that use a type of deer as their logo?
In fact, there are many other manufacturers in the industry that also use a deer or deer-like creature. It was important to us that we not only have a deer, but a mythical creature that is reminiscent of a bull, a deer, but also a human - a fusion that represents our brand. Selva Negra is the Spanish name for Black Forest. Our mythical creature combines elements from both worlds - both the decorations on the face, which are based on Día de los Muertos, and a modification of the Black Forest Bollenhut.
What happened next against Jägermeister?
We said that we don't see that we can enrich ourselves with their brand and that we have no interest in a connection because we are in a completely different segment. Jägermeister makes a herbal liqueur, we make an agave spirit with 46 percent volume in a different price category. And the Hamburg court ultimately saw it that way.
Who is your product aimed at? Have you defined a target group?
We knew that the product would appeal more to connoisseurs - those who are very familiar with spirits, be it pure or cocktails. Of course we are also available at consumer trade fairs and in specialist retailers, but our most important target group is the catering industry. We currently make 80 percent of our sales in the catering industry - and that's really a top hotel industry.
Just as an example: Today I have an appointment at the Traube Tonbach (hotel with one of the best restaurants in the world,
editor's note
) - one of our best customers. The 5-star hotels in the Black Forest, such as the Öschberghof golf resort, the Dollenberg Hotel and Alexander Hermann's Posthotel in Bavaria, as well as some of the top bars in Stuttgart - such as Holzmaler or Jigger and Spoon - also have our Selva Negra and the corresponding ones Drinks on the menu.
But you are also active at trade fairs, right? Then you also reach the end consumers.
Exactly. We reach a lot of whiskey drinkers there. These are people who like complex and strong spirits. We also cater to gin and tonic drinkers quite well. We also have the signature drink from Mexico up our sleeves, the Paloma. In keeping with our Selva Negra, we call it Black Forest Paloma – with salt, lime juice and a dash of grapefruit soda on ice. With a wink: The Mexican answer to gin and tonic. This is how we bring Selva Negra closer to long drink and cocktail drinkers. However, at a unit price of 69 euros, it is clear to us that we are reaching less the retail sector and more the professionals, the bartenders and those who work with the product.
Is the market ready for a “German tequila”?
People see that tequila and mezcal is an exciting and growing market and we have created a small innovation with Selva Negra. Because we are, and I just have to emphasize this again, the first to do this in Germany and the first in Europe with this mezcal style.
The Spirits Business
, the largest spirits magazine in the world, named us among the top 10 most innovative launches in 2023 - and we were the only start-up and also the only German company. In 2022,
About Drinks
named us
Newcomers of the Year. So many people already have us on their radar. Our focus is now fully on the product, the brand and the idea we have. And it's all a lot of fun.