Premiata Distilleria Galdino Caselli
Staff Writer - July 1, 2006

Distilleria CaselliThe July 2006, Company of the Month, Premiata Distilleria Galdino Caselli, takes us to Sassuolo, in the Emilia region of Italy. Sassuolo is a small town in the foothills of the Modenese Apennines, famous worldwide for the production of superior quality tiles. At the beginning of the 20th century however, Sassuolo made a name for itself across Italy as well as abroad, with the Sassolino, a liqueur whose name was invented by Distilleria Galdino Caselli.

The History
Francesco CaselliIn 1860, Francesco Caselli founded the Distilleria Caselli (Caselli Distillery). At the time the production was limited to very small quantities of homemade liqueurs produced in the back room of the family-run grocery store, located in downtown Sassuolo, on Via Fenuzzi.

Galdino CaselliClose to half a century later, in 1907, his son Galdino stepped forward to take over the family enterprise. Given the growing success of the typical liqueurs produced by the small distillery, he decided to abandon the grocery business to dedicate full time to the production of liqueurs. It was then that he added his own name to the family enterprise, which thus became Distilleria Galdino Caselli, the name which still identifies the distillery to this day, close to a century later.

At one time, the best selling product of the family business, as well as the most sought-after by the market, was called Rinfresco all'Anice (Anis-Flavored Refreshment). To set his product apart from the competition, Galdino decided to call it Sassolino, in honor of Sassuolo, its place of production. Thus, long before to become well known in Italy and the world because of its tile production, Sassuolo made a name for itself thanks to this liqueur, which won numerous awards and recognition in all the major trade shows and fairs of the time.

Sassolino Caselli  
Historic postcards from the early 1900s
 
   

Francesco CaselliFrancesco took the helm of the distillery in 1943 and, in addition to maintaining the production  and marketing of Sassolino, introduced and perfected the production of Nocino, the traditional walnut liqueur which was homemade then in many peasant homes in the surrounding Modena province. It wasn't long since the Nocino became the top product of the distillery.

The Company
Early on, the Distilleria Galdino Caselli took on the commitment of producing high quality liqueurs, following ancient recipes and local tradition which were, and are, passed down from generation to generation of expert liqueur makers.

Informed by the same philosophy, in more recent years the still-family-run enterprise has introduced new products, such as the Fragolino (wild strawberry-based liqueur), Mirtillino (blueberry-based liqueur), Prugnolino (plum-based liqueur) and Erba Luigia (lemon verbena herb-based liqueur). Thanks to the original formulas and the refined flavors, these drinks have encountered great success among the consumers.

 
Nocino Caselli
 

Nocino Riserva
 
Aceto Balsamico di Modena
 

Balsamic Vinegar from Modena – Golden Reserve
 
Salsa di Mirtilli Rossi all;Aceto Balsamico di Modena
 

Cranberry Sauce with Balsamic Vinegar from Modena Caselli
   

In addition to the almost obsessive care taken in selecting the base products, as well as the tight controls applied during the whole production process, the Distilleria Galdino Caselli provides its clients unique, customized services. These include the possibility of customizing even small orders of assorted liqueurs and products with the clients' logo, or the use of especially designed labels.

The Products
For the new millennium the Distilleria Galdino Caselli offers the international markets unique, niche quality products, which have all the characteristics of the best traditional homemade liqueurs of a bygone era.

In addition to alcoholic drinks, the distillery produces excellent quality balsamic vinegar from Modena, as well as an amazing new line of products which could easily open up new markets: the fruit sauces with balsamic vinegar from Modena.

In fact, at the recent Italian Flavor Forum V, which took place at the San Francisco Golden Gate Yacht Club, the Cranberry Sauce with Balsamic Vinegar from Modena Caselli was crowned as the Best of Show product, with a score of 95 points on a 100-point scale.


Home • General Index • Contact Us • Search • News • About Us • Site Map


Feedback? Please, contact the web master.
Site Navigation

Article
Company of the Month

Quick Links





La e-Letter di
WineCountry.IT

Sign up for WineCountry.IT e-letter to keep up to date with news and information about Italian wines and food.


Italian version of WineCountry.it


WineCountry.it Gold Medal


WineCountry.it vertical logo