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 Koval Inc. is the first boutique distillery located in Chicago. Its founders, Robert and Sonat Birnecker, gave up academic careers to bring the distilling traditions and techniques of Robert’s Austrian grandfather to America. Certified both organic and kosher, Koval holds itself to the highest standards of purity and craftsmanship. Koval avoids the common industry practice of outsourcing the production of neural grain spirits for rectification, making all of its products from scratch. Each step of the distilling process, from the “mashing” to the bottling is carefully monitored to insure that only the best spirit reaches your lips. Sonat Sonat is a Chicago native who spent over a decade living in the most exciting cities of Europe only to confirm that there is no place like the “Paris of the Prairie.” And after the ivory towers of London and Oxford, the salty licorice ice cream of Stockholm’s Gamlastan, games of makot on chof Bograshov, late nights at Vienna’s Café Hawalka, swing dancing at Ballhaus Mitte and all that there is in the world great and beautiful there is nothing more worthwhile than family (if one is lucky). And being so lucky, starting a family business has only brought hers closer together. It got her sister and brother in law to take stems off literally tons of pears, her brother to put down his computer and pick up a broom, her mother to write beautiful poems and create amazing labels, her father to drive to the far reaches of the city to pick up various items of need, and it has made it possible for a husband and wife to work together on something they take pride in while keeping their baby close at hand.
Robert
Robert is a native of Austria’s Salzkammergut, a region known for having been a personal favorite of Kaiser Franz Joseph (a most benevolent ruler), relaxing thermal pools, Café Zauner’s famous pastries, and a host of distillers that turn local produce into a variety of fine spirits. Robert’s grandparents have spent over 40 years in the distilling and brewing business, producing award winning “most” (a kind of pear beer) and prized distillates using the fruits of their orchard and grains of their field. They thought that one of their children would carry on the family tradition of distilling, but it would have to wait a generation. Before deciding to distill, Robert studied politics and economics in Austria and Morocco and served as the Deputy Director of the Austrian Press and Information Service at the Austrian Embassy in Washington DC. His decision to distill was born out of his love of traditional crafts and the pride of a small family business, both of which exemplify the real American dream. www.kovaldistillery.com |
