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=== Races | Economy | Buildings & Organizations ===

====== MIKULIC INC. DISTILLERY ======

{{:mikulic_inc_scenic_2d.png?direct&400|}}

===== Overview =====

  * **Location:** [[hope|Hope]]
  * **Address:** East Northerm Crossroad 1
  * **Surroundings:** Adjacent to Hope's vibrant Seedway

Built in December 2626 by the founders of [[mikulic_inc|Mikulic Inc.]], Vinko & Zora Mikulić, the complex married Old-[[the_earth|Earth]] pot-distilling with frontier scarcity. Two handmade copper stills —  riveted from cryo-tube sheeting — turned Tandora fruit mash into [[Slivovitz Superior]] and [[Krupnik Gold]], each wax-sealed in clay flasks. Output never exceeded 300 bottles per quarter, making the distillery a pilgrimage spot for connoisseurs until, in the [[the_gamma_age|Gamma Age]] the [[federal_confederation|Federal Confederation]] nationalised alcohol production in 2631. All equipment was then stripped for the state-run [[Federal Beverages Manufactory]]. Today only a roofless shell and the cave cellars remain.
===== Architectural Significance =====

  * **Construction Material:**  Stacked and reinforced cargo containers salvaged from the Last Frontier, braced with local timber beams and anchored into a raised stone-and-wood foundation to counter river mud and seasonal flooding.
  * **Floors:** 1 ground work-hall + 2-chamber rock cellar + hill-top tasting lodge.
  * **Design Purpose:** Passive temperature control — natural 10 °C airflow in the cellars replaced energy-hungry chill loops. Copper lyne arms vented through the cliff façade, giving the site its nickname “The Singing Pipes.”
  * **Power Source:** Two 5-kW [[quantum_fusion_batteries|QFBs]] in a vented alcove drive the still agitators, cellar lights, and office ledgers-terminal; gravity airflow handles cooling, keeping battery draw minimal.

===== Building Structure =====

**Ground Work-Hall**

  * **Mash Room:** Tandora crushers, oak ferment tubs, yeast starter bench.
  * **Twin Pot Stills (“Vinko” & “Zora”):** 800 L wash still, 400 L spirit still fired by reclaimed heater-coil burners.
  * **[[nano-honey|Nano-Honey]] Infusion Bench:** Ceramic crocks where Krupnik rested with Virel–spice oils.
  * **Filling Nook:** Hand corker, crimson wax kettle, batch-stamp press.
  * **Accounts Office:** Two battered desks, ledger racks, and a wall safe for lottery fees and wax-seal dies; window looks onto the cart track for bill-of-lading checks.

**Rock Cellar (access via iron stair) **

  * **Bonded Storage Chamber:** 60 m² rack lined with clay flasks and sample jars; naturally 10 °C.
  * **Oak-Smoke Kiln:** Pit where Tandora pits & Virel pods were oak-smoked.

**Courtyard Tasting Pavilion **

  * Timber-and-canvas lean-to adjoining the south wall; flagstone floor shaded by Tandora trees.
  * **Sampling Bar:** Three-seat counter
  * **Lottery Lounge:** Six upholstered crates for quarterly tasting-lottery winners; panoramic window over Arla valley.

===== Look and Feel =====

Inside, the distillery feels improvised yet obsessively cared for. Copper stills glow amber under oil-lantern light, their reflections rippling across scarred container walls where scorched hull paint, weld seams, and faded ship markings remain visible beneath layers of soot and polish. Sweet ester haze hangs low above the ferment tubs, clinging to exposed ribs and rivets. The floor is a patchwork of stone slabs and repurposed deck plates, grooved and dented by years of dragged barrels and crate carts.

Copper pipes snake openly along the walls and ceiling, secured with mismatched clamps and ship-grade brackets, ticking softly as pressure shifts. Wax seals sizzle in the crimson pot, filling the space with hot resin, Tandora zest, and faint metal tang. Every sound carries — the hollow resonance of containers turns footsteps, dripping condensate, and the thrum of agitators into a muted industrial echo.

Outside, thin vapour plumes slip from lyne-arm vents welded through the container skin. When the wind cuts across the stacked hulls, it coaxes low, flute-like tones from the pipes — an accidental, haunting signal that carries across the crossroads, announcing the distillery long before it comes into view.

===== Roles and Responsibilities =====

**Exohuman Staff**

  * **Vinko Mikulić (Master Distiller):** Oversees mash, cut points, oak-smoke profile.
  * **Zora Mikulić (Operations Lead):** Manages lottery lists, quality lab, trade contracts.
  * **Cellar Hand (1):** Rotates crocks, monitors temperature, waxes flasks.
  * **Harvest Porters (2, seasonal):** Haul Tandora crates and nano-honey amphorae from valley groves.

**Automated Staff**

  * **[[butler_bots|Butler Bot]] – Tasting Host (1):** Pours 10 mL samples, explains flavour notes, records guest feedback.
  * **[[cleaning_bots|Cleaning Bot]] (1):** Evening floor scrub and copper-polish cycle.

===== Public Access, Operating Hours & Rhythm =====

  * **Lottery Tastings:** First Sunday each quarter, 14:00 – 17:00.
  * **Trade Dock:** [[new_kourou_courier_service_carts|New Kourou Courier Service carts]] accepted Tue & Thu, 10:00 – 12:00.
  * **Production Shifts:** Mash/Distil 06:00 – 18:00 (as fruit supply allows).

===== Product Line — “Heritage Spirits” =====

| # | **Label** | **Style & Flavour Note (ABV)** | **Quick-Play Quirk** | **Bottle Price** |
|-|—|—|—|—|
| 1 | [[Slivovitz Superior|Slivovitz Superior]] | Double-pot plum brandy, oak-smoked (48 %) | +1 Con saves vs. cold for 1 h | 22 K |
| 2 | [[Krupnik Gold|Krupnik Gold]] | [[Nano-Honey|Nano-Honey]]–clove -clove liqueur, silky heat (42 %) | Remove 1 level Exhaustion; -2 Insight for 1 h | 20 K |
===== Security Measures =====

  * **Stone Gate Bar:** Iron grate across cart track always locked; keys held by both founders.
  * **Flask Ledger:** Each ceramic bottle logged, wax-stamp matched to ledger before leaving site (discouraged theft).
  * **Rare Patrol:** [[guarding_troopers|Guarding Troopers]] patrol the Hope Region regularly but do not surveil it constantly 

===== Player Interaction Possibilities =====

**Legal interactions:**

  * Port a wagon-load of Tandora fruit or Nano-Honey amphorae up the steep stone track and help the Cellar Hand weigh-in the cargo.
  * As a [[new_kourou_courier_service|New Kourou Courier Service]] employee, collect the quarter-batch crates (max. 25 per run) and sign the ledger before rolling back toward Hope Station.
  * Technicians contracted through the [[new_kourou_robotics_syndicate|New Kourou Robotics Syndicate]] swap or recalibrate the two 5 kW QFB stacks in the power alcove—routine but delicate work.
  * Present a genuine (or convincingly forged) invitation, sample the day’s cuts, and mingle with connoisseur NPCs in the Courtyard Pavilion.
  * Lend a skilled hand—or improvised gasket—to Vinko when a still lyne-arm springs a live-steam leak mid-run.

**Illegal interactions:**

  * Sneak into the oak-smoke kiln to steal recipe tablets.
  * Swap wax stamps to divert a crate of Slivovitz to the black market.
  * Sabotage the lottery draw to guarantee a patron’s win.

===== Tactical Advice for Dungeon Masters ======

  * **Smoke-House Fire:** A kiln flare-up threatens to ignite wooden roof beams — players race barrels to safety.
  * **Hidden Cellar Cache:** Rumour of a secret third chamber holding “Batch 000” casks; locating the camouflaged door could fund (or doom) a campaign.

===== Related Pages and Further Information =====

  * [[beta_age|Beta Age]]
  * [[free_state_of_settlers|Free State of Settlers]]
  * [[Hope|Hope Region]]
  * [[mikulic_inc|Mikulić Inc.]]
  * [[space_drinks_inc|Space Drinks Inc.]] – mass-market rival
  * [[pilswerke_inc|Pilswerke Inc.]]
  * [[Federal Beverages Manufactory|Federal Beverages Manufactory]] (Gamma Age)

**Beverages and spirits of Mikulic Inc.:**

  * [[Slivovitz Superior|Slivovitz Superior]]
  * [[Krupnik Gold|Krupnik Gold]]