Ketel One is a

vodka Vodka ( ; is a clear distilled beverage, distilled alcoholic beverage. Its varieties originated in Poland and Russia. Vodka is composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impurities and flavourings. Traditionally, it is ...

brand of the Nolet Distillery in

Schiedam Schiedam () is a large town and municipality in the west of the Netherlands. It is located in the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area, west of the city Rotterdam, east of the town Vlaardingen and south of the city Delft. In the south, Schi ...

, Netherlands. Ketel One Vodka is distilled from 100% wheat in copper

pot still A pot still is a type of distillation apparatus or still used to distill liquors such as whisky or brandy. In modern (post-1850s) practice, they are not used to produce rectified spirit, because they do not separate congeners from ethanol as ...

s (Ketel is Dutch for ''pot still''), filtered over loose

charcoal Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, ca ...

, and rests in tile-lined tanks until ready. Ketel One Vodka is named after the original copper pot still, "Distilleerketel #1." The alcohol content of this spirit is 40% (80

proof Proof most often refers to: * Proof (truth), argument or sufficient evidence for the truth of a proposition * Alcohol proof, a measure of an alcoholic drink's strength Proof may also refer to: Mathematics and formal logic * Formal proof, a co ...

(US), 70 degrees proof (international)). The Nolet Distillery also makes Ketel One Citroen, Ketel One Oranje, Ketel One Botanical (in the varietals Peach & Orange Blossom, Cucumber & Mint, and Grapefruit Rose) and Ketel 1

Jenever Jenever (, ), also known as Hollands, genever, genièvre, peket, or sometimes as Dutch gin (archaic: Holland gin or Geneva gin), is the juniper-flavoured traditional liquor in the Netherlands, Belgium, and adjoining areas in northern France ...

. Ketel One and the Nolet Distillery is 50% owned by the Nolet Family, and 50% owned by

Diageo Diageo plc ( ) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It is a major distributor of Scotch whisky and other spirits and operates from 132 sites around the world ...

, which acquired its stake in 2009 for $900 million USD.

History

The De Nolet, Nolet windmill at the distillery in

17th century

Ketel One is produced by the Nolet Distillery in Schiedam, Netherlands. The Nolet Distillery was founded in 1691 by the Nolet family, French Huguenot refugees, and has remained in the Nolet family ever since. Ketel One is so named for the original coal-fired copper still that was used to distill it, Distilleerketel #1.

18th century

In 1794, a windmill known as "the Whale" was built on the property. In 1867 the family began to focus on exporting their products.

19th century

The town of Schiedam has long been known for the alcohol industry. By the end of the 19th century the town boasted over 400 distilleries.

20th century

The Nolet Family opened a distillery in the United States in 1902 and sold vodka under the Imperial Eagle Vodka brand name. Nolet were forced to close it during the

prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

era, with Joannes Nolet forced to flee the country. The distillery industry in Schiedam was hit hard by

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and by the end of the war only 40 distilleries were left. Within the next few years changes in technology and consolidations and mergers left Nolet as the only distillery still operating in Schiedam. When Carolus Nolet (1941–), the tenth generation of the family to own the company, took over for his father in 1979, the company made a wide range of spirits. He made the decision to focus on one product, and make it the best it could be. The company began producing

jenever Jenever (, ), also known as Hollands, genever, genièvre, peket, or sometimes as Dutch gin (archaic: Holland gin or Geneva gin), is the juniper-flavoured traditional liquor in the Netherlands, Belgium, and adjoining areas in northern France ...

exclusively. Ketel 1 Jenever quickly became the best selling Jenever brand in the Netherlands. At that point the company began to look at returning to the United States market. Carolus began to develop a vodka designed specially for the American market, focusing on quality. Nolet returned to the U.S. market in 1983, launching Ketel One Vodka in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

at the BIX Restaurant and Supper Club. Rather than advertising directly to consumers, the company encouraged bartenders and distributors to sell their product. In 1991 Carl Nolet Jr. moved to the U.S. and founded Nolet Spirits USA. Between 2000 and 2010 the company released two flavored vodkas, Ketel One Citroen and Ketel One Oranje. Sales of Ketel One increased from 7,000 cases in 1992–1993 to 250,000 cases worldwide in 1997.

21st century

Ketel One reached sales of one million cases worldwide in 2002. In 2003 the company launched its first advertising campaign, thanking Ketel One drinkers. By 2008 the company was selling close to two million cases per year. In 2008,

announced an investment of $900 million in a joint venture with the owners of Ketel One, with the Nolet family continuing ownership of the distillery in Schiedam. In 2009 the brand attracted attention for its first television commercials, which seemed "tailor-made" for the post-

Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009.

economy. Despite being sold in 25 countries, up until 2008 the United States was the only country where the company advertised. In 2014, ''The New York Times'' cited the Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index as having the Ketel One brand at number 2, behind only Grey Goose among vodkas.Bond’s Martini Will Be Shaken With a Different Vodka
The New York Times; Media; DEC. 15, 2014

References

External links

*
Official corporate site
{{Vodkas Diageo brands Dutch vodkas Schiedam