Milan Zaric, Owner of Zaric Distillery – Serbian Rakija Could Become Global Brand

The Zaric Distillery, which produces fruit rakija, was founded on the tradition and on the premises of the former famous rakija distillery Povlen, which was founded in 1946, but whose fame was fading in the past two decades. Until the Zaric family arrived.

In an interview for eKapija, the owner of the Zaric Distillery, Milan Zaric, explains that, despite the fruit farming tradition of the Kosjeric area, various circumstances had caused the old Povlen to lose its fame. But, with great investments and dedication, the old Povlen was reborn as the new Zaric Distillery.

– Determined, above all, to use, at full capacity, the potential of this fruit farming area and the tradition of making top quality rakija, we worked at full capacity to modernize and renew the existing facilities for the processing and distilling of fruit, and with that, we also increased the needs for fruit farming in this area, as well as the production capacities.

The great financial investments, dedication and desire to combine top technology, contemporary science, experience and the old Serbia tradition in the best way in the modern era, enabled us to have the old Povlen truly shine as the new Zaric Distillery, the most modern rakija distillery in southeast Europe.

At the Distillery itself, 25 people are employed, and in the fruit processing season, we also have plenty of seasonal workers.

Would you especially highlight a product?

– All the rakijas have found their way to their consumers, but, for example, Kraljica (plum rakija rested for 7 years) and Nostalgija (quince rakija rested for 3 years) stand out particularly in the local market. As for international awards, Nirvana (pear rakija rested for 3 years) and Opsesija (raspberry rakija rested for 3 years) stand out especially. At the international contest WSWA Convention in Las Vegas, Nirvana won the most prestigious award of this opulent contest, the so-called double gold. With this medal, Nirvana secured its place in one of the historic display cases at Hotel Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. In addition to that, at Spirit Selection by Concours Mondial 2020 in Brussels, Nirvana placed among the 10 best spirits in the world.

Where do you get your plums, do you have your own plantations?

– As for the plums and other fruit, we don’t have our own plantations, which is why we have fruit-growing subcontractors. In addition to Kosjeric, we have fruit-growing subcontractors throughout Serbia and there are around a hundred of them. Considering that autochthonous plum varieties are slowly disappearing and that priority is given to the newly developed varieties, we are negotiating with our subcontractors from Kosjeric to have them establish new plantations of the Pozegaca, Trnovaca and Crvena Ranka varieties, which are proven to make for best quality plum rakijas.

You have signed an agreement on the export of rakija worth a million dollars with Chinese companies. How have they reacted to the Serbian rakija? How much do you export to China and to which other countries do you export or plan to export?

– Rakija is an exotic drink to foreigners, but they mostly have an idea what it’s about. They compare it to other spirits they have had the opportunity to taste, such as whiskey, tequila or vodka. The comments are truly more than positive. Of the total annual production, which amounts to around 250 thousand liters, 40% of what’s produced is exported, both to the countries of the region and to the USA, Canada, Australia, Austria, Switzerland, Bulgaria, England, China and other countries.

Do you consider it realistic to turn your products, just like the Serbian rakija, especially plum rakija, into a globally recognized brand?

– We truly believe that the Serbian rakija could become a world brand. It requires an all-encompassing and continuous quality, which is achieved through the modernization of the production on one hand, whereas, on the other hand, we have to maintain a traditional stamp and insist on resting in barrels, which give rakija its soul.

Can you explain to us what has caused the quality of rakija to improve so much lately – is, for example, the secret when it comes to plum rakija in burning the barrels, in mixing various plum varieties…?

– Rakija had been unrecognized and, I can safely say, unjustly degraded. It finally has the place it was always supposed to have. Years of educating the market by the then small number of quality producers of the Serbian rakija has led to the fact that the market now mostly doesn’t even accept anything except quality rakija.

Are you planning to invest in the production?

– Growth and continuous quality require constant investments. The Zaric Distillery is the most modern distillery in this part of Europe, so in order to maintain the quality, as well as the quantity of the production, constant investments are needed.

I would mention that the Ministry of Agriculture has recognized the needs of rakija producers and that, through its subsidies, in the past years, it has taken part in the necessary investments of the producers of the Serbian rakija.

As for further plans – we will have the whole world develop a taste for real things. Rakija is the next big thing in the world of SPIRITS.

Destilerija Zarić d.o.o. Kosjerić

Zarić Distillery

Milan Zarić

Povlen Distillery

production of rakija

rakija

rakija Nirvana

rakija Kraljica

spirits

alcoholic drinks

plum

plum rakija

Serbian rakija