อ่านบทความภาษาไทยคลิกที่นี่
“We aim to put Thailand on the world map for premium spirits,” ambitiously declared Stefan Rakoczi, founder and CEO of Sanpatong Distillery.
Thailand is known for many things, but to date high quality spirits has never been one of them. Yet, this small, if quite-rightly not-so-humble, distillery just 40 minutes from Chiang Mai city centre has already been recognised by two of the industry’s most prestigious and rigorous competitions—the International Wine and Spirit Competition and the London Spirits Competition, both of which have awarded the distillery’s gin and rum with great distinction. Despite having been in business only since 2023, this year Sanpatong Distillery’s Rebel White rum received awards from both IWSC and the London Sprits Competition, a remarkable achievement which aligns with its founders’ ambitions.
During the doldrums of the pandemic, Swedish Hungarian Stefan and his Thai wife Lek Rakoczi moved their family to Chiang Mai from Sweden to ride out the storm. Following a successful career across a multitude of industries from Fintech to manufacturing; IT to health and safety, Stefan began to cast his eye around for a project to get involved in. When the couple began to notice the amount of spoiled tropical fruits not being exported and going to waste as the world shut down, a spark of an idea was ignited. Why not turn all that delicious fresh fruit into premium spirits?
“I rolled up my sleeves and dived deep into learning all about distillation and the business of premium spirits; this must be from my Hungarian side,” laughed Rakoczi as he poured us a thimble full of pure gin from the elegant purpose-built VIP bar which sits at the heart of Sanpatong Distillery and where guests are invited to sample…and indulge.
After a large sip which surprised with its sweet smoothness and hints of the tropics, he continued, “and my wife Lek took on the challenge no one said she could achieve—she began to work the process to become a legitimate distillery business.”
In a country with such a strong alcohol monopoly, opening a distillery is a Herculean task. Yet two years later, with licences and registrations required by all the Thai departments and ministries in hand, prestigious global awards on the shelf, systems and processes implemented, brands and logos designed and 45 alcoholics as well as non-alcoholic products developed, Sanpatong Distillery is already working on expanding it’s capacity from its current 240,000 litres per year to its projected capacity of half a million.
An organic farm at the back of the property features an environmentally sustainable farm and a deep well, from where some of the fruits and botanicals as well as clean water used in the distillery’s spirits come. Sanpatong Distillery has also been working with organic farmers and agricultural universities in the area who are committed to environmentally responsible practices and 100% natural processes. Processing, hospitality, sales and the majority of its staff are local villagers who are trained in-house by the Rakoczis. A brewmaster and master distiller with over 37 years under his belt has been head hunted from his last position as VP of operations for three breweries in China to now head up the distilling and brewing operations for Sanpatong, to oversee the distillation process, ensuring clean, pure, efficient and unrivalled modern distillation technology is used to create the most premium spirit products.
“We want our products to be very Thai and hyper local,” explained Rakoczi of the distillery’s philosophy. He went on to say that sugarcane used in the rum is sourced from Doi Inthanon, young coconut water is bought from Ampawa and lamyai comes from orchards in Lampang. While some items, such as juniper, must be imported, the Rakoczis say that they source as much locally as possible, visiting each supplier and partner repeatedly to ensure excellence and purity of all produces.
“If it wasn’t in the fruits to begin with, it will never be in our bottle,” said Stefan who then asked us to get back to him the next day to tell him whether we had a hangover or not. (We didn’t.)
Tasting a tipple…or two
Sanpatong Distillery now offers immersive farm to bottle tours which incudes a full range of spirits tasting experience—a highly recommended half day activity. First, a guide takes visitors for a wander around the farm to learn about traditional organic farming methods, before touring the distillery where they can meet the local staff busy peeling and sorting fruits (the aromas of sugarcane, tropical fruits and botanicals already heady, even before the first sip). You get to learn about yeast fermentation and the high-tech and precise distillation process carried out in multistage copper pot stills which run through ambient cooled copper reflux pipes before a final resting period in stainless steel tanks pre bottling. The entire process is remarkably visual, transparent and very reassuringly clean.
As thirst builds up after the tour which moves on to the cool air-conditioned VIP bar where a fantastic tasting and pairing session begins. A full range of Sanpatong Distillery’s premium gins and rums is served, frill-free at room temperature, to show off their purity, with curated bites of cheeses and chocolates from local Chiang Mai producers paired with every serving. Visitors can learn more about how to distinguish and identify quality spirits while moving from gin to rum and vodka to eau de vie.
A mini-masterclass has the in-house mixologist show visitors how to make cocktails from the spirits as well as the non-alcoholic products such as the delightful coconut flower nectar and cold pressed pure apple juice. The portions are generous and the experience not just interesting and educational, but sheer fun.
Sanpatong Distillery can also come to any party or event and feature their tasting and pairing or organise more bespoke experiences showcasing their award-winning products.
Decisions…decisions…
Sanpatong Distillery offers a wide range of spirits and flavours to suit all palates, whether its in their gin, rum, vodka, brandy, au de vie or even non-alcoholic products.
Their Rebel rum label brings the Caribbean’s Rhum Agricole back to its roots—after all sugarcane is native to our part of the tropics, even though rum was developed on the other side of the world. Using 100% pure first-pressed sugarcane juice without the dilution of molasses, the award winning Rebel rum, untouched by artificial enhancements is complex yet refreshingly light. Rebel White, which has won the highest accolade in both competitions to date is crystal clear and tastes fresh like a sunny day, the refreshing sugarcane notes making it easy to drink pure. Rebel Red which leans into heady fruits and spices such as strawberries, roselle and chilli, adds complexity to any cocktail and the floral and fruity Rebel Blue with its infusion of longan and butterfly pea flowers and dried grapes sits comfortably between its colourful siblings, able to standalone as well as being a great drink to mix and match into any number of cocktails.
Then there are the gins which are cleverly labelled Imagin (I’m a gin), each of which are characterised by their juniper-forward gin flavours, but also full of character and bold hints of the tropics. Imagin White is crystal clear and infused with white pomelo, longan, jasmine, chrysanthemum, peach fruit tea, green cardamom, coriander and lemon zest, making for a clean and serene mouthful of flavour. Imagin Red is a sparkly and fiery drink which offers hints of a unique blend of juniper berries, red rose apple, strawberries, roselle, red damask rose flowers, cranberries, red chilli, green cardamom and coriander. And Imagin Blue, is a tropical garden in a glass with its complex recipe of juniper berries, butterfly pea flower, lime, blue raisins, blue lotus flower, lime zest, kaffir lime leaves, green cardamom and coriander.
Beyond these award-winning products, there are also a range of cassava-based vodka, rum and gin products branded Elevated Gin, Elevated Rum and Elevated Vodka.
“Everything that is in our bottles is also featured on our labels,” said Rakoczi. “Most spirits don’t announce all of their ingredients because they use additives or other impurities. We are proud of the fact that we don’t, so we announce exactly what is in each bottle.”
The Brand
Airlines, hotels, resorts and restaurants are already working side by side with Sanpatong Distillery to develop their own labels—for a minimum order of 300 bottles you can co-brand your own white label, or have your own private label for a minimum order of 500 litres! Yet Stefan and Lek’s ambitions go far beyond bottling.
They have now developed merchandise from premium VIP gift sets which come with glasses and coasters. Memberships are also now offered for true fans of the spirits to receive updates and news, invitations to events as well as priority access to limited and rare editions. They are working with mixologists and chefs from across Thailand and beyond to develop new products and experiences.
Barely out of its infancy, this little distillery that could is already making a name for itself on the international spirit stage and is set to soon become a household name not just in its hometown of Chiang Mai but far beyond our borders.
“Our vision was simple: to show that spirits from Thailand can be world class without compromise. Every ingredient we use is natural, grown by farmers we know and trust and every drop is crafted under our own roof. We do not add what nature didn’t give us,” said Stefan Rakoczi with great pride, before everything became a bit too jolly to take notes and our Citylife laptop was put aside.
Skal!
Sanpatong Distillery
Tel. 094 612 8777
GPS: https://maps.app.goo.gl/LHb8kgVrGds38nmy5
