Nutsler Hazelnut. Hazelnut spirit made from roasted nuts – full-bodied, nutty, 35% ABV.
Nutsler Hazelnut is a spirit made from local hazelnuts: gently roasted, distilled in a copper pot still in the Black Forest, and bottled at 35% ABV in a 500ml bottle. Not too sweet and not harsh, that is how Nutsler describes its own classic. A nut schnapps for a shot after a meal, with a beer, or for mixing.
A nut spirit like Nutsler Hazelnut comes from an old craft with a new focus. Distilling fruit, berries, and nuts is an ancient German craft, and it has a long tradition in the Black Forest. Nutsler Spirituosen GmbH has consciously dedicated itself entirely to the nut within this spectrum. The label simply reads "Spirituose" (spirit), followed by "Made from local hazelnuts," and the bottle number is entered by hand. Imagine a Sunday afternoon: the coffee has been drunk, the cake plate is empty. Instead of a sharp fruit schnapps, a small glass is placed on the table that smells of roasted hazelnut and nougat. This hazelnut variety is intended exactly for this moment, and it is also the introduction that Nutsler itself recommends for the world of nut spirits.
Roasting brings nougat into the glass
The Nutsler tastes full-bodied like roasted hazelnut with clear nut-nougat notes, round and harmonious rather than sharp. The reason lies in the preparation: the hazelnuts are gently roasted before distilling. According to the manufacturer, this, combined with the artisanal production, releases significantly more aromas. On their previous website, it was stated that roasting doubles the aromas of the hazelnut.
In the glass, the roasted hazelnut comes to the fore, reminiscent of freshly roasted kernels from the pan. On the palate, this is followed by a soft note of nougat, carried by the 35% ABV. The distillery describes the taste as follows: not too sweet and yet not harsh. The sweetness is therefore subtle and accompanies the nut rather than masking it. In the end, the hazelnut remains, round and harmonious, as the manufacturer writes.
Anyone looking for a thick, heavily sweetened nut liqueur for desserts will be less happy with this spirit. It is clear in the bottle and remains a schnapps—one that simply tastes of hazelnut.
As a shot, with beer, or with Coffee Tonic
You can drink this nut schnapps as a shot, with a beer, or after a meal. This is what the manufacturer suggests. The appropriate glass is a small schnapps glass or a slim stemmed glass in which the toasted aroma can collect. Nutsler does not specify a serving temperature: try it at room temperature and slightly chilled and decide for yourself.
After a Sunday roast, it replaces the classic digestive schnapps; with afternoon coffee, it pairs well with nut cake, hazelnut macaroons, or a piece of chocolate. When drunk with a light beer, the nut provides a mild contrast to the hop bitterness. For mixing, Nutsler demonstrated its own idea early on: hazelnut and Coffee Tonic. For this, add a shot of Nutsler over plenty of ice in a long drink glass and top up with Coffee Tonic. The coffee note and the roasted hazelnut complement each other well, and the drink remains light enough for the early evening.
This is a spirit with 35% ABV, sold to those aged 18 and over. Note for allergy sufferers: Nutsler Hazelnut is made from hazelnuts, and hazelnuts are tree nuts.
Our tip: Place the bottle on the table after a meal together with an espresso. A sip of coffee, then a small sip of hazelnut – the coffee makes the roasted notes in the schnapps even more pronounced.
Heartcrafted in the Black Forest, Tasted in Berlin
Nutsler combines a small-scale distillery in the Black Forest with taste tests in Berlin. The motto is on every label: "Heartcrafted in the Black Forest. Tasted in Berlin." According to Nutsler, the craft of fruit distilling has been passed down from generation to generation in the Black Forest for over three hundred years. Distiller Bernd Schrempp comes from this tradition. He built the copper pot still in which the Nutsler varieties are created himself during his classic apprenticeship.
The second part of the motto belongs to Berlin. There, the team worked with bartenders and restaurateurs to search for contemporary interpretations of German classics and, after many tastings, decided on the recipes. Nutsler describes the result itself as: as a shot or for mixing, with beer or after a meal, straightforward and honest.
Behind the brand is Nutsler Spirituosen GmbH, based in Schutterwald in the Ortenau region. Nutsler has been on the market since 2019. Alexander von Lukowitz, one of the minds behind the brand, coined the phrase that with Nutsler, the team is building a bridge of taste between the world of patisserie and the art of distilling. With the hazelnut, this bridge is easy to taste. Nougat, roasted kernels, nut cake: these are aromas from the confectionery, here as a clear spirit. The hazelnut itself, as the distillery emphasizes, has been cultivated for thousands of years.
For beginners and as a gift for cake lovers
Nutsler Hazelnut is the variety with which you can get to know the nut spirits from Nutsler well. The distillery itself calls it their classic and recommends it for a first impression. It suits everyone who finds fruit brandies too sharp but is still looking for something clear with character. And it suits everyone who loves hazelnut in chocolate, pastries, and ice cream. Besides hazelnut, there are three other varieties from the same pot still: Pistachio, Cashew, and Coconut.
As a gift, the bottle with the illustrated squirrel and the handwritten bottle number makes a good impression: for a birthday, for a coffee party, as a thank you for the hosts. If you want to continue tasting afterward, reach for the Pistachio spirit with its marzipan notes or the Coconut spirit for cocktails. You can find the entire selection on our Nutsler page.
The hazelnut spirit is not suitable for those who expect a creamy, sweet liqueur to pour over ice cream. This is a schnapps with 35% ABV, made for the small glass.
Roasted hazelnut, nougat, and 35% ABV from the copper pot still in the Black Forest – the hazelnut spirit for a shot after a meal and coffee on Sunday.
