Zetea - Premium spirits with tradition of over 100 years

Zetea thru past, present and future...this is the story that cannot be told in a few words and it's written endlessly...

It is worth remembering that all those who, at a certain moment, come in contact with Zetea, including you, have contributed and are still contributing to its story.

Somewhere in Europe, on the ancient lands of Transylvania from Romania today, in an area called "The Last Plum Bastion", an innovative family, from a guild of masons who built numerous buildings, probably thought they needed a clean, natural and good stimulant, such as the result of fruit distillation.

Over two centuries ago, that is, somewhere through the 19th century, one of Silviu Zetea's ancestors, laid the foundations for this activity.

From then until today, but for a long time from here onwards, this uninterrupted activity has been and will be marked by the genetic and viral inheritance of "creating".

Passing through the quick steps of history, we reach the interwar period and afterwards, when one of the sons of Ioan Zetea, by the name of Valer Zetea, becomes noticed by building more distilleries, not being the only son to do this but surely the most persevering. 

He built several distilleries, in villages such as Viile Apei, Viile Racsei and one in Mediesu Aurit in 1964, somehow forced by the circumstances of that time, given the context of the regime.

Although the country was in a state-owned society given by the communist regime, these entrepreneurs of the time managed to retain their small property and operate under the patronage of former state-owned enterprises, called Vinalcooluri.

This and perhaps due to the fact that even in those times, the Palinca, the Tuica, the brandy and its derivatives were leasing the body and soul, as it is today.

It those times, Valer Zetea, supported by his family, set-up at home, a fruit collection centre, which his son, Silviu Zetea, remembers the times with nostalgia.

Being an open minded person, Valer Zetea, gifted with initiative, an entrepreneur in the true sense of the word, although underserved, left this world in 1975, managing to pass on his character to his descendants, who together with his wife, Florica Zetea, continued this tradition of fruit processing and distillation.

Since then, there has been a concern for innovation, modernisation that ultimately led to what we see and taste today.

And so we reached the period after the 1989 revolution, when Silviu Zetea, like his father once, stands out, and animated by the burning desire to carry out this activity in a legal framework given by a democratic society, in which the capital was no longer considered illegal, establishes for the first time an independent enterprise, thus fulfilling the dream of his father.

The small enterprise newly established in the early 1990s started with a new project which was the reconstruction of the distilleries, in 1991 the company logo is registered as its own blazon and in 1994 the Zetea trademark is registered.

Production started in 1994 with an innovative system which was developed by switching to triple distillation, with direct fire, using wood, still-type boilers and provided with a unique system, of its own design, which implicitly leads to an increase in the quality of the product, while also giving the tuica its own imprint, a particularity. This method was later called the ZETEA method begin unique in the Romanian area.

Unfair competition, the mentality that traditional fruit distillates are not suitable for the network of prestigious restaurants, being considered only suitable for weddings, baptisms and funerals, has been eventually successfully overcome. 

Supported closely by his family, his wife Teodora and children Gerard and Tanita, starting with 2000 after a careful strategy, puts on the market the products of the luxury range that you can find on our website.

After gaining international recognition by obtaining the silver medal at the World Profile Contest in Brussels and countless other distinctions and awards, the Zetea products have now been associated with quality, tradition and the attention of a small business.

Romanian Drinks is proud to announce being the only importer of Zetea and bringing their range of products to UK customers.