ABD launches 'Wodka Gorbatschow' in India
09 Jun 2008
Allied Blenders & Distillers Pvt. Ltd. (ABD) today announced the launched of the 87-year-old German vodka brand 'Wodka Gorbatschow' in India. The brand is Germany's biggest vodka brand and also its third strongest spirits brand. It will be priced in India for Rs570 for a 750 ml bottle. Wodka Gorbatschow is also among the top 15 premium vodkas in the world, and with 1.4 million cases sold it is a member of the "Club of Millionaires". In 2006, Wodka Gorbatschowwas awarded the Monde Sélection Gold Medal.
The brand will be locally bottled at the Aurangabad plant of Allied Blenders & Distillers Pvt. Ltd Maharashtra, which is bringing the product to the country in agreement with Wiesbaden-based winery, Henkell & Sohnlein Sektkellereien KG , Germany, which owns the brand.Wodka Gorbatschow is the first brand launch in India from the ABD-Henkell alliance.
The roots of the brand go back to the czarist era in St. Petersburg. In 1917 the Gorbatschow family left Russia during the October revolution and refounded the Gorbatschow Company in 1921 in Berlin. The brand is Germany's biggest vodka brand and also its third strongest spirits brand.
"The vodka category growth in India continues to outperform the total spirits market growth," said Deepak Roy, executive vice chairman and CEO, ABD. With such a booming economy, Indian consumers are increasingly connected to global trends and looking for new experiences, thus offering Wodka Gorbatschowsignificant potential."
"Wodka Gorbatschow is the first brand launch marking the ABD-Henkell alliance in India," says Deepak Roy, executive vice chairman and CEO, ABD. "The Indian market is dynamically poised for a highly evolved state, and there couldn't have been a better choice of brand than Wodka Gorbatschow to serve the ever-increasing demand for pure and high quality vodka. We are confident that the product quality will speak for itself, having done so for decades."
The distinctive processing of the brew is said to impart it a distinctive flavour - the filtration 
process is conducted at -12°C, after which the vodka is double-filtered over charcoal, making the product extremely smooth and exceptionally pure. which along with from premium-processed ingredients finally results in its soft, mild aroma-impression that the brand seeks to convey.
The vodka comes in a clear glass of its bottle, which the company says conveys the idea of Arctic purity. The bottle design signifies the swirling minarets of Moscow. The brand mark of the dove and the distinct brand colours of arctic blue, white and silver represent the purity and pristine clarity that the brand stands for, Allied Blenders said in a company statement, adding "With its positioning of purity, Wodka Gorbatschow has always stood for excellence and nothing less than the highest standards of quality. "