Jakob Kurberg was born on April 9, 1837, in Oruveski, where his father, Johann, worked as a miller and owned watermills, which he had purchased from the manor. Jakob graduated from Rakvere Kreis School in 1856 and then went on to study at the St. Petersburg Medical and Pharmaceutical Academy, where he obtained a pharmacist’s qualification. After his studies, he bought a pharmacy in Gatchina, near St. Petersburg, which he ran for 12 years. His grandson, Erik Thomson, wrote: “Unexpectedly, he gave up the pharmacy and his profession, returned to his homeland, Estonia, and decided to become a landowner.” However, this decision was not so unexpected.

Already during his university years, Jakob was influenced by the Estonian national awakening. Many Estonians studied and worked in St. Petersburg, and the growing sense of national identity also impacted the local community. In Gatchina, he actively participated in the activities of the Estonian Society. Additionally, the opening of the Gatchina-Paldiski railway in 1870 created new opportunities. At the same time, the construction of the Tapa-Tartu railway was underway, which caused a decrease in the value of manor lands associated with the railway. Jakob, with his keen business sense, saw an opportunity to profit from land purchases in this area. Another motivation was starting a family—on November 25, 1876, he married his 19-year-old cousin Emilie, and the newlyweds moved into Emilie’s parental home in Arbavere.

The first opportunity to buy a manor arose in 1879 when Einmanni Manor was put up for auction. Jakob Kurberg acquired it for 169,000 Russian gold rubles with the help of his friends. In 1880, the family, which already included daughters Lydia and Martha, moved to Einmanni Manor. Successful management soon allowed him to expand his estates—by 1884, he had leased Saiakopli (Neuhof) knight’s manor along with its subsidiary manors, Kalle and Trilli. However, the manor’s central estate remained with its previous owners. The purchase agreement was finalized in 1886. That same year, he also acquired Moe (Muddis) Manor. In addition to daughters, the Kurberg family welcomed sons Arved, Evald, and Herbert, and in 1887, after moving to Moe, their fourth son, Voldemar, was born. From Moe, Jakob managed his 4,000-hectare estates. This location proved ideal as it was just half a kilometer from the Tapa (Tapsi) railway station (nearly half of today’s Tapa town lies on former Moe Manor land), facilitating the transport of goods. All the purchased estates were intersected by the Tapa-Tartu railway, and the distances between the three manors were short: 5 km from Moe to Saiakopli and about 15 km from Saiakopli to Einmanni.

Industrial Legacy and Economic Success

In August 1887, Jakob Kurberg’s project was approved in St. Petersburg, granting him permission to establish a distillery, a liqueur factory, and a brewery and lemonade factory at Moe. Construction began immediately, and by the end of the year, the first batch of raw spirits was produced. By 1890, the entire production complex was completed. Due to the high demand for potatoes, local farmers started growing them more as the factory began producing spirits not only from grain but also from potatoes. By-products of spirit production, such as mash and slop, supported livestock farming, particularly beef cattle breeding. A slaughterhouse and sausage factory were established in Vilgu (now part of Tapa).

Another distillery was located at Einmanni Manor, from where spirits were transported to Moe for distillation and purification. Raw spirits were also brought to Moe from other nearby manors’ distilleries. Under Kurberg’s leadership, business expanded further: peat production began at Einmanni, and Friesland sheep breeding was introduced at Kaeva. Additionally, during the construction of the Baltic narrow-gauge railway, Kurberg supported the establishment of the Tamsalu station building. Einmanni was just 6 km from Tamsalu.

Business Acumen and Community Contributions

Kurberg extended his business reach to Tallinn, purchasing a wholesale warehouse on Vene Street, restaurants on Harju Street and at Pärnu Road 59, and opening Café Muddis near the Nunne Tower. He also established wholesale warehouses at the Tapa freight station and in Tartu. Most of the production was exported to Russia.

According to the 1902 Järvamaa land review, Jakob Kurberg represented the manor police, financed the Moe Evangelical Parish School and a horse post station in Tapa, owned a farm produce store at the Tapa railway station, and operated three mills (Moe and Kalle watermills with sawmills, as well as the Kalle windmill). He also contributed to the expansion of the Tapa railway station.

As railway construction and freight transport provided many job opportunities in the late 19th century, a small settlement around the Tapsi station grew rapidly. Jakob Kurberg sold plots from Moe Manor land for construction. Since the land closer to the station was forested, buyers could immediately use the wood for building. The new settlement needed a proper fire department, and in 1903, with Kurberg’s support and funding, a fire station was built on Pikk Street in Tapa, next to the Sõber store. A few years later, a community and dining hall (later known as the “Du Nord” restaurant) was completed and offered free of charge for use by the Harmonie Society. This hall hosted the First Estonian Literary Language Conference in 1908, where the foundations of modern Estonian literary language were laid. Estonia has many dialects—the northern dialects of Old Estonia were quite similar, while those of Old Livonia (southern Estonia) were very different. The debate between southern and northern Estonian linguists lasted for two days. Ultimately, it was decided that the Ambla-Kadrina dialect of this region would serve as the basis for the literary language. The conference was funded and its participants accommodated by Jakob’s daughter, Martha, and her husband, August Thomson.

Farmer’s Markets were held four times a year in the paved square in front of the Sõbra store. The store got its name (“Friend’s Store”) because Jakob Kurberg instructed the merchant to offer a small drink to better customers, following the practice he had learned from his Gatchina pharmacy. Later, this tradition was replaced by offering tobacco, as Jakob’s son Arved, a devout Catholic, refused to fund alcohol.

Old maps reveal that Jakob Kurberg Estonianized the place names under his ownership in the late 19th century. For example, Mahaküll, Moä, and Muddis became Moe Village and Moe Manor. The name was fitting, as it housed one of the most modern factory complexes of the time, and in the Kurberg family, glasses were raised “for Moe” (for fashion). Neuhof and Sakkakopli became Saiakopli, and Korpsi Manor became Einmanni.

Legacy and Influence

Jakob Kurberg died unexpectedly of a heart attack in 1907. His estate was divided among his children and wife. Moe Manor, along with the factories and parts of the Saiakopli, Kalle, and Trilli lands, went to his eldest son, Arved, an agronomist. Einmanni Manor and the remaining parts of Saiakopli, Kalle, and Trilli were inherited by Evald, an engineer. The younger brothers were still in university at the time.

The industry Kurberg built and his contribution to Estonian entrepreneurship and culture live on in the Moe Fine Spirits Distillery, whose roots trace back to the factory he founded. His work brought not only economic progress but also cultural and linguistic development, the effects of which are still felt today.

Author: Sirje Võsa

The starting point of the modern Moe Distillery can be traced back to December 2, 2009, when the current owners acquired the Rakvere and Moe distilleries, which had gone bankrupt during the financial crises. At that time, there were no functioning spirit factories left in Estonia. The initial plan was to modernize and restart Rakvere’s spirit production while investing in the restoration of Kurberg’s distillery.

CEO Sven Ivanov and partner Urmas Nimmerfeldt brought together former master distillers, recruited new specialists, and began operations. Unfortunately, on August 4, 2020, Sven Ivanov passed away unexpectedly due to a sudden health condition. Despite changes in leadership, the core values and goals of the company have remained unchanged: to honor local raw materials, continue domestic production, preserve and develop centuries-old traditions, and create high-quality products.

Rakvere Spirit Factory

Production at Rakvere Spirit Factory resumed in 2010, after a few years of inactivity. From the beginning, only Estonian grain, primarily rye, was used, as rye has historically and culturally been Estonia’s most significant grain.

In 2012, the distillery produced its first organically certified spirit, which was a rarity at the time due to the limited availability of organic alcohol on the market. While the Rakvere facility mainly focused on spirit production, the experienced team, led by Jaan Tamm, successfully produced grain distillate using the same equipment. Unlike spirit production, distillation preserves the flavors and aromas of the grain.

The first batch of organic rye distillate was produced in 2015 and was named Handsa, reflecting the essence of the drink. Following the success of Handsa, the next major goal was to create Estonia’s first whisky distillate. In 2016, rye whisky distillate was produced and placed in oak barrels at Moe for aging.

Sustainability Investments

Several sustainability-focused investments were made at the Rakvere facility:

• 2013 – A biomass-powered cogeneration plant was built to produce the necessary steam for the factory while also supplying heating for the city of Rakvere.
• 2014 – A feed factory was established to process spirit production byproducts into animal feed pellets.

Expansion into Sanitizers and the Move to Moe

In 2020, during the COVID-19 crisis, Estonian Spirit OÜ expanded its operations to include the production of disinfectants, launching Virus Stop sanitizing products for both hands and surfaces.

Later that year, spirit production in Rakvere was discontinued, and the factory relocation to Moe begun. While the spirit factory is yet to be fully operational, Estonian Spirit began small-scale distillation at Moe in 2022. During the restoration of the old Moe vodka factory, new 1600L and 100L distillation units were installed, allowing for the production of gin, aquavit, and various distillates. This facility, informally known as Handsa Distillery, is ideal for developing experimental and exclusive products.

Moe Distillery

While spirit production was ongoing in Rakvere, a bottling facility was established in Moe. Initially, both Rakvere and Moe operations were part of Estonian Spirit OÜ. In 2016, the decision was made to separate vodka production legally, forming Moe OÜ, which took over the bottling and production at Moe.

Expanding the Product Range

Grain can be used to produce various alcoholic beverages, including vodka, flavored vodka, grain brandy, whisky, gin, and aquavit. Moe is committed to enhancing the value of Estonian grain, gradually introducing products based on either grain spirit or grain distillate.

• 2011 – Production of vodka at Moe began with Moe Viin 1886.
• 2012 – The organic version, Moe Viin Mahe 1886, was introduced.
• 2018 – J.J.Kurberg Rye, a rye malt vodka was produced, using in part malted rye which is rare in today’s spirit production industry.
• The uniqueness of Moe vodka lies in the skilled processing of local grain and the use of water sourced from the Pandivere Water Protection Area. The water is naturally hard due to the limestone bedrock and undergoes reverse osmosis filtration before being blended into vodka.
• 2017 – Estonia’s first EU-protected geographical indication was established for Estonian Vodka. The designation ensures that only vodka made from Estonian grain, Estonian spirit, and Estonian water can be called Estonian Vodka.

After vodka production was firmly established, the next logical step was to develop flavored vodkas. Moe focuses on natural flavors and high-quality local ingredients, avoiding artificial additives and added sugars.

• 2015 – The J.J. Kurberg flavored vodka series was launched with J.J. Kurberg Kuldjuur and J.J. Kurberg Pipar.
• 2017 – J.J. Kurberg Hemp and J.J. Kurberg Hops.

The next category developed was rye brandy.

• 2016 – Handsa rye brandy was introduced in three different strengths.
• 2018 – flavored Handsa series was developed, featuring sea-buckthorn, rowanberry, wild garlic, and black garlic.
• 2023 – The Handsa Barrel Aged edition, aged in oak barrels, was released as an exclusive small batch.

Gin, Whisky, and New Innovations

• 2017 – Estonia’s abundance of junipers inspired the creation of Mohn Poppy Distilled Gin.
• 2022 – Mohn Poppy Spruce Tip London Gin and Mohn Poppy London Gin
• 2019 – After three years of aging, Estonia’s first whisky, Tamm & Rukis, was released. The series is still in its early stages but includes two single cask releases from small ex-Oloroso casks.
• The Estonian Whisky Founders Club was established, allowing members to purchase their own whisky casks and track their aging process.
• 2021 – Saxby Akvavit, a Scandinavian-style spirit aged in oak barrels and flavored with seaweed, was introduced.
• 2023 – The Signature Cocktail series, featuring ready-to-drink cocktails, was launched. Drinks like Skinny B*tch (Moe Viin 1886), Gin & Soda (Mohn Poppy Distilled Gin), and Michelada (J.J. Kurberg Pipra vodka and Muddis beer) are made following the same high-quality standards as all Moe products.

Muddis Brewery

Beer brewing at Moe dates back to 1688, but over the centuries, production shifted towards vodka. Jakob Kurberg’s brewery once produced Muddis Pilsner, Porter, and mead, but brewing ceased in 1914 due to Prohibition.

• 2015 – After more than 100 years, beer production resumed at Moe. A modern brewery was installed in the historic brewery building, and Muddis Craft Beer was launched, now offering five main varieties with continuous new flavor experiments.

Moe Museum & Visitor Center

The historic vodka factory built by J. Kurberg in 1887 has undergone extensive renovations to preserve its heritage and give it new life.

• The right wing houses the museum across three floors.
• The central section includes the Handsa Distillery and hotel reception.
• The left wing features a 200m² event hall with eight boutique hotel rooms above it.
• The brewery cellar now serves as Õlletuba Krog, offering tastings and feasts.
• A factory shop sells locally produced beverages.

The combination of tradition, innovation, and sustainability ensures that Moe Distillery continues to shape the future of Estonian spirits while honoring its rich past.