Kleiner Feigling

Kleiner Feigling is a German liqueur brand produced by BEHN in Eckernförde, Schleswig-Holstein. Its defining product is a naturally flavoured fig liqueur, generally served in small 20-millilitre bottles and consumed as a shot, although it can also be used as a digestif or cocktail ingredient. Production began in 1992, establishing the brand in the German spirits market and later expanding its presence across European and other international markets. The brand name is a German wordplay. “Feigling” means “coward,” while “Feige” means “fig”; the two terms create the pun behind the literal English rendering “Little Coward.” This playful identity is central to the product’s memorability and supports a social, informal drinking occasion rather than a strongly traditional or ceremonial liqueur presentation. In Germany, Kleiner Feigling is particularly associated with its single-serve shooter format. A customary serving ritual involves turning the small bottle upside down and tapping its cap on a table before drinking. The impact creates bubbles in the liquid and has become part of the brand’s recognizable consumption culture. This ritual, combined with the compact packaging and approachable fruit flavour, gives the product a role in parties, bars, celebrations and casual group occasions. The brand’s core proposition is a distinctive fig taste in an accessible liqueur format. Unlike a broad portfolio brand whose identity depends on multiple spirits categories, Kleiner Feigling is closely tied to one recognizable flavour and one highly visible bottle format. Its product is therefore positioned around flavour distinctiveness, sociability, portability and playful German branding. Available reference material identifies Germany and Europe as important markets, while also describing the brand as having worldwide distribution and substantial annual case sales; no dated financial or sales figures are included here because the available material does not provide a sufficiently specific time context. Kleiner Feigling is made by BEHN, but publicly available reference material supplied for this entry does not establish a separate founder, a current individual owner, a corporate listing, or a detailed executive history. The brand’s documented development is consequently best understood through its product, packaging, naming and serving ritual rather than through disclosed corporate milestones. Its present status is treated as active because the reference material describes ongoing production and provides current brand websites, although detailed current operating information is limited.

Kleiner Feigling was introduced in Germany in 1992 and is made by BEHN in Eckernförde. From its beginning, the brand differentiated itself through a naturally flavoured fig liqueur rather than through a conventional grain, fruit-brandy or herbal-liqueur identity. The product name provided an additional point of distinction: in German, “Feigling” means “coward,” while “Feige” means “fig,” making the name a humorous pun built around similar-sounding words. The brand’s market identity developed around the combination of flavour, packaging and occasion. Kleiner Feigling is commonly sold in 20-millilitre shooter-sized bottles, a format that makes the product easy to distribute at social gatherings and suitable for immediate consumption. In Germany, drinkers are associated with a serving custom in which the inverted bottle cap is tapped against a table immediately before drinking. This creates visible bubbles and turns consumption into a small group ritual. The practice gives the brand a behavioural signature beyond the liquid itself. As production continued, Kleiner Feigling became known outside Germany, with reference material describing distribution across European markets and worldwide sales. The brand’s expansion appears to have been supported by the portability and recognizability of its miniature bottles, as well as by the accessible, fruit-led character of the liqueur. Its name and serving ritual also make it readily identifiable in informal drinking environments such as parties, bars and celebrations. The available source material does not provide a detailed chronology of ownership changes, executive appointments, advertising campaigns, product reformulations or acquisitions. It identifies BEHN as the producer and Eckernförde as the production base, but does not establish a founder or a separately disclosed legal owner for the brand. Nor does it provide dated, independently contextualized financial information. Accordingly, the documented history of Kleiner Feigling is strongest in relation to its 1992 launch, its fig-liqueur proposition, its small-bottle format and its spread from Germany into broader markets.

• 1992

  Production begins

  [1]Kleiner Feiglingen.wikipedia.org

  Production of Kleiner Feigling begins in Germany under BEHN, establishing the brand as a naturally flavoured fig liqueur.

An accessible, playful German liqueur brand centred on naturally flavoured fig liqueur, compact shooter packaging and a distinctive social drinking ritual.

• Liqueur · 1992

  Kleiner Feigling Fig Liqueur

  The core Kleiner Feigling product is a naturally flavoured fig liqueur made by BEHN in Germany. It is strongly associated with 20-millilitre shooter-sized bottles, which support single-serve consumption at parties, bars and other social occasions. The liquid’s fig profile and approachable liqueur format distinguish it from more traditional spirit categories, while the compact bottle and customary pre-drinking tapping ritual provide a recognizable brand experience.

1. 1Kleiner Feiglingen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Kleiner Feigling official websitekleinerfeigling.com
3. 3Kleiner Feigling official German websitekleinerfeigling.de