In January 2023, as always hosted by the Russian Scientific Research Institute of Food Biotechnology (hereinafter referred to as the VNIIPBT Institute), the International Tasting Competition "EURASIA SPIRITS DRINKS" was once again held.
This year, more than 200 samples of vodka, spirits and strong beverages from Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan were submitted to the competition, so the taste panel worked for 3 days.
Over the four years of operation, the "EURASIA SPIRITS DRINKS" competition has proven to be one of the most prestigious competitions of spirits and strong alcoholic beverages in Russia and the CIS countries. Such qualities as the competition independence and the taste panel high professionalism are beyond dispute, which any of the producers can confirm.
It was these qualities that were especially noted by Dimitry Gennadievich Burtsev, Assistant Director of the Federal Service for Alcohol Market Regulation, member of the competition Supervisory Board, in his congratulatory speech to the competition laureates.
- Alexey Sergeevich Plokhov – Chief Process Engineer for Holding "MordovAlkoProm"
- Olga Nikolaevna Korobka – Chief Process Engineer for LLC "First Blending Plant"
- Burtsev Dmitry Gennadievich – Head Assistant of the Federal Service for Alcohol Market Regulation (Rosalkogolregulirovanie)
- Spirin Vladislav Viktorovich – President of the Association of producers of "Russian Vodka"
- Danilovtseva Alla Borisovna – Deputy Director General for Scientific Work of the Rosspirtprom JSC
- Polyakova Irina Valeryevna – Head of Quality and Metrology Service of the Rosspirtprom JSC
- Veretekhina Tatiana Nikolaevna – Chief Technologist of the Saransky LVZ LLC
- Kukhta Tatiana Anatolyevna – Deputy General Director for Production - Chief Technologist of the Syktyvkarsky LVZ JSC
- Mikhail Georgievich ZHURAVLEV – Chief Technologist of the PREMIUM UZBEKISTAN ST LLC
As last year, members of the Supervisory Board had the opportunity to conduct selective parallel tasting of samples in order to familiarize themselves and compare the taste qualities of the samples with the assessments of these samples by members of the taste panel, which in turn allows us to confirm the objectivity of the assessment of the presented products.
Gins have recently become particularly popular among producers and consumers; in 2023, more than 20 samples were presented at the competition, which, of course, confirms the ability of producers to quickly respond to changes in the alcohol market, and most importantly, to master the production of a new type of product with high organoleptic characteristics in the shortest time possible.
The project of Holding "MordovAlkoProm" for the production of domestic whiskey should be especially noted. This year, "MordovAlkoProm" produced the first batch of whiskey from its own spirits. This is certainly an important event in the Russian alcohol industry and the organizers of the competition wish the successful implementation of this project.
Over the four years of the competition, enough information has accumulated to make it possible to carry out some analytical work, which will serve as the basis for compiling a rating of products presented at the competition.
In addition, the organizers plan to create an industry professional rating of alcohol producers, which will help provide objective information for consumers about the implementation by producers of innovative technological and methodological solutions for the production of the highest quality alcohol products.
Summarizing the results of past competitions, we can say with confidence that a certain number of producers, industry leaders, have formed in the Russian alcohol market, who manufacture products of the highest quality and are ready to evaluate them according to the highest criteria, which are used only in professional tasting competitions.
The award ceremony took place on April 6, 2023 in Moscow, as always in the festive and solemn atmosphere of the congress hall of the RAIKIN Plaza hotel.
Guests of the award ceremony, as well as the competition laureates, noted the warm, friendly atmosphere of our evening, which facilitated communication between industry professionals, i.e. alcohol producers with distilleries, and distillery professionals with representatives of retail chains.
It is no coincidence that Vladimir Vasilievich Ionkin, Deputy Director of the Retail Companies Association (ACORT), and Elena Generalova, Head of the Quality Control Department of X5 Retail Group, were present at the award ceremony.
Thanks to the large number of participants, our competition sparks interest with specialists from large retail chains, as they have the opportunity to get acquainted with a large number of samples of alcoholic products, as well as learn the features of the manufacture process.
That is why every year at our competition quality specialists from large Russian retail chains act as freelance tasters in the special nomination "CHOICE OF CHAINS". This year, as part of this nomination, samples of vodka and liqueur products were assessed by professionals from the Pyaterochka retail chain.
V.V. Ionkin, Deputy Director of the Association, expressed his interest in developing mutually beneficial cooperation between the Retail Companies Association and alcohol producers. He pays great attention to the quality and safety of alcoholic products presented on the shelves of the Association members’ stores.
It is also worth noting that within the framework of this cooperation, we have already reached an agreement on the participation of a representative of the Association’s directorate in the Supervisory Board of the ESD 2024 competition.
Considering that the competition is a project that is designed to assess innovative solutions in technologies for the production of alcoholic beverages, the organizers of the competition, in agreement with members of the Supervisory Board, decided to establish a special award for the competition, i.e. "BIG GOLD MEDAL", which will be awarded to manufacturers who implement similar technological and methodological solutions.