An Ancient Take on Contemporary Distilling

The man behind Stählemühle is Christoph Keller, a former art-book publisher who moved to the Lake Constance in 2004 from Frankfurt, to escape the city and work as a freelance art consultant. His newly acquired farm came with a distilling license, which inspired him to start making eau de vie, and after winning a few local and international distilling prizes, he decided to turn his hobby into a brand. Looking round, you can see how Keller’s past has informed his new venture. The bottles may look like ancient apothecary jars, but in fact they are by German designer Mark Braun; Keller has also produced glassware and drinking accessories with E15, Saskia Diez and Lobmeyr, as well as a one-off label project with artists such as David Shrigley and Jonathan Monk.

From “Still Life” by Rosa Bertoli for Wallpaper, 2016; Photograph by Albrecht Fuchs

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