Argentina’s Iltico Limoncello has been listed in its home market with Avolta at Ezeiza and Aeroparque duty free stores in Buenos Aires, continuing to enjoy growing sales since the end of the pandemic. The story of Iltico combines Italian traditions with Argentine lemons.
“With the listing of the Iltico No 9 and No 18 brands in Avolta Argentina we are beginning the second stage of our growth in the duty free category and are actively looking for new listings in Latin America, North America, and the Caribbean. We know that consumers recognize the added value of our 750ml bottle and individual gift carton. Consumers are also interested to know that there is more than one type of Limoncello, it is great to explain to them that our No 9 is made with the peel of 9 Lemons and our no 18 is made from the peel of 18 lemons,” says commercial and duty free director Agustin Liendo.
“Our initial target is Argentine travelers looking to take a gift to family and friends when they travel overseas, but we also know many international passengers are buying our limoncello as a souvenir of their stay in Argentina.”
Liendo says that as the brand grows in duty free, their objective is to provide “tasting opportunities to all potential consumers as well as make great cocktail suggestions to improve the overall drinking experience.”
The story of Iltico focuses on Argentine lemons. In 1998, company founder Luis Silvetti sought to combine the traditional Limoncello recipe handed down by his Italian grandfather with the lemons from Tucuman in Northern Argentina.
Production started in 1998 in a modest warehouse in Avellaneda in the province of Buenos Aires. Then in 2015, Nicolas Silvetti, the nephew of the founder, moved production to a custom-built operation in Tucuman.
The new bottling plant, built to the highest international standards, has allowed the company to significantly increase production to meet increasing domestic market sales and at the same time meet the needs of international partners in different countries.
Silvetti says that many people do not realize that Argentina is one of the biggest lemon producers in the world producing three times as many lemons as Italy.
“Tucuman is the center of Argentine production and setting up our production center here makes a lot of sense. Quality is of supreme importance for us and being very close to the lemon orchards, we are able to source the very best lemons for our Limoncello range. Limoncellos are still partially hand crafted and all our lemons are hand peeled. This method preserves essential oils of the fruit and avoids an undesired bitter aftertaste. We are also using the finest quality triple distilled grain alcohol. We feel that the exceptional quality of the lemons and the best quality alcohol is guaranteed to ensure the best experiences for all our consumers,” says Silvetti.
Liendo concludes, “As we increase our presence in duty free, we are also striving to increase the size of the domestic market, and we are looking to capitalize on our recent launch of RTDs in certain duty free markets.”
