Tradition, passion and a unique recipe, carried over several generations in the family, have led to the production of drinks of exceptional diversity and quality, under the motto "Zetea - a story that cannot be told in a few words" . Silviu Zetea innovated the classic process of producing brandy and fruit brandy, switching to triple distillation, with direct fire, alambic type. Silviu wants to make a point about the correct use of the word "plum brandy", which refers exclusively to a distilled plum drink, so it is wrong to use the terms "apple brandy", or "pear" or "apricot" when referring to ‘țuică’. The latter should be called brandies (rachiu). And he explains through Țuică Zetea de Transilvania and Pălinca de Ardeal.
Plums, apples, pears, cherries, mulberries, quinces, sour cherries or blackberries and bitter cherries are just some of the fruits from which the brandy can be made. The copper boilers in which the liqueur is prepared give it a unique, unprecedented flavour, and a good brandy is known for the aroma of the fruit that is felt in it. Also important are the barrels in which the fruit is left to ferment. The brandy makers say that the best are the lightly burned oak barrels, which lend extremely subtle flavours to the brandy. And for ageing, the brandy must be left to stay in the mulberry barrels for at least five years, from where it borrows a wonderful yellowish colour.
Also, good and clean brandy forms beads that last when poured into glasses. But the most important ingredient of a good brandy, says Silviu Zetea, is the good heart with which the brandy makers give it to those who want to taste it. Brandy also has a number of benefits for the body: it helps digestion, it is a "stomach bandage". A glass of this wonderful liqueur not only relieves pain, but also creates friendships.
