Maraska drink factory in Zadar marks 200th anniversary
- by croatiaweek
- in Business
(Photo: Roberta F./CC BY-SA 3.0)
ZAGREB, 22 Sept (Hina) – Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on Tuesday visited Zadar’s most famous company, the Maraska beverage producer, accompanied by its new owner, Bosnian entrepreneur Svjetlan Stanić.
The hosts informed the prime minister about the alcoholic beverage plant, where the extract of marasca cherry and walnut is stored in big barrels. Besides the Maraschino liqueur, Maraska is proud of the fact that it is one of the few companies producing the Orahovac liqueur in the old way, from green walnuts.
“I’m pleased to see that a centuries-long tradition has been preserved and that production will continue in future. I’m confident that with the production of key brands, these traditional products will find their place on the domestic and foreign markets,” Plenković said.
He congratulated the Stanić Group, which recently bought Maraska, on the 200th anniversary of the alcoholic and soft drink factory. “It’s an excellent move for branding Zadar and Croatia, for contributing to investment from Bosnia and Herzegovina in Croatia and from Croatia in Bosnia and Herzegovina and, it seems, it’s a great signal for new investment which will advance production.”
“On behalf of the government, I welcome this investment in Zadar, which has had a great tourism season, which is quickly recovering after the COVID crisis,” Plenković said.
Stanić Beverages, a company owned by the Stanić Group, signed a contract on the purchase of Maraska with Saponia and Koestlin, members of the Mepas Group. Stanić Beverages now owns 98.25% of Maraska shares, having bought 45.3% from Koestlin and 52.90% from Saponia. It will also make a binding public offering for the rest of the stock after the completion of the transaction with Saponia and Koestlin.
View this post on Instagram
History
200 years ago, back in 1821, Girolamo Luxardo opened a new liqueur factory in Zadar, which very soon acquired a good reputation and began to sell products outside the Europe, in North and South America, Africa and Asia. The Luxardo factory has attached great attention to the layout and design of Maraschino. A very interesting fact is that at that time the bottles were manually knitted by Arbanasi girls, and this tradition is kept up until today.
Zadar liqueur manufacturer Luxardo, won gold and silver medals for his excellent product Maraschino on the Second World’s Fair held in Vienna in 1854. At the time the liqueur producers from Zadar participated in many international economic fairs and exhibitions.
View this post on Instagram
In 1911-14 Michelangelo Luxardo raised the building with the purpose of hosting his company (distillery-office-warehouse) and his 4 sons families. The LUXARDO building was confiscated without compensation and nationalised by the Yugoslav partisans in 1944.
The Maraska drinks company, and the activities of other nationalised liqueurs producers such as Drioli and Vlahov was consolidated in the building in 1945-46.
View this post on Instagram
Maraska, which employs 150 people, produces and distributes high quality alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks, especially high-quality products based on cherry marasca – this authentic cherry, which grows only in the climate of Zadar’s hinterland.
