Local tipple: Pernod Ricard unveils Our/Berlin

The French spirits group opened Our/Distillery to produce the new vodka Our/Berlin in the city’s edgy Kreuzberg district in March, and has given it all the trappings of an independent start-up. Pernod Ricard has no hand in the distillery’s management, the local proprietors receive a share of the profits, and the specialist vodka will not be available through the company’s distribution channels. Instead, the aim is to make Our/Berlin a favourite in Berlin’s clubs and bars.

The project is part of a push to create a local product with grassroots appeal. The company realises that some consumers may be turned off by a product with ties to a multinational corporation. ‘It is probably a contradiction, and the only way to get around it is to be totally transparent,’ Åsa Caap, director for global innovation projects at Pernod Ricard told Mixology. Pernod is also open to ventures in other cities, inviting local residents interested in setting up Our/Vodka micro-distilleries to get in touch. 

For more on trends in the drinks sector, see our Revivalism macrotrend and Cocktail Futures microtrend.