Wurst press release 6.10.2021
The Järvenpää-based family business Wursti Oy's Olutnakki has been selected as the best special sausage of 2021 by the Academic Sausage Society (AKS), which annually selects the best sausage products in Finland. Last year's winner was Wursti's Mini Krakova sausage.
Both products are part of Wurst's Tasty range. Sallamari Lempinen, Product Manager at Wurst, laughs:
- The Tasty series has clearly lived up to its name. Often only the big players are involved in the tastings, so it's nice when we smaller ones get to show our hand in the tastings too.
Wursti knows special sausages well - after all, they have been handmade in Järvenpää for 35 years, along with cold cuts and other processed meats. But it is also important to listen to consumers. That's why, for example, Olutnakki has been produced in cooperation with K-Stores to meet consumers' wishes.
- The shops' understanding of what people want, combined with the experience of our sausage masters, constantly generates good and fun ideas. Our sausage masters know how to get the best combination of flavour and texture. In addition, hand-made products have more character than fully mechanised production, which is also appreciated by consumers.
The continued growth of microbrewery culture combined with the tapas culture of snacking is an ideal combination for a ready-to-drink product like Olutnak. Equally, the desire to experiment with microbrewery products is mirrored in the small bites that accompany them.
- Recent years have seen a clear increase in the consumption of speciality sausages and snacks. People want to explore different flavours and even impulsively try new products, which shows a great willingness to experiment. As with microbrewery beers, for example, sausages are looking for unique features and new ideas.
The interest rate crisis has also affected Wurst's operations - for example, demand for products used in the restaurant sector has fallen significantly. However, the Korona has not been allowed to affect the company too much and Lempinen gives a lot of credit to the staff:
- We have always valued craftsmanship and our products are largely handmade, so this win is a great recognition of all our skilled craftsmen. It feels especially good to receive this honour in the middle of the recession, because despite the recession and its impact on working conditions, our staff have continued to do the same great work they have always done.
Last year, Wursti scored a double victory by winning both the Best Special Sausage and Best Raw Sausage titles. Järvenpää has clearly discovered the secret of the winning recipe.
- What's good about breaking a winning pattern, so let's go forward as before. With good confidence, let's go into next year's tasting season and try to keep on winning. In the meantime, however, we'll focus on more mundane things, such as making the 30-year-old Siskonmakkara, cold cuts and creating a new recipe for success on the shelves," Lempinen concludes cheerfully.
The AKS jury evaluates the sausages in a blind test, which assesses the taste, texture, consistency of the paste and crispness of the crust.
The Academic Stove Association has been tasting sausages since 1991 and has already met 988 times for evaluation sessions . During the17 sessions held during this tasting season (1.9.2020 - 31.8.2021) , atotal of 125 sausages from four different countries were evaluated, of which104 were novelties made in Finland, the society says on its website.
Wurst's award-winning sausage products through the years:
2021 Best special sausage Beer snack
2020 Best special sausage Mini Krakow sausage
2020 Best raw sausage Grillimaister Kielbasa raw sausage
2016 Best black sausage Koblasnik Rasputin black pineapple
2015 Best sausage Beer snack
2014 Best special sausage Potato sausage
2012 Best sausage Chorizo sausage
2004 Best new sausage Pirkka Cheese-Krakovan sausage
For more information:
Sallamari Lempinen, Wursti Oy / Product Manager
[email protected], tel. 040 8259596