Aquavit FAQ
by Ken Walczak
Q: What is Aquavit?
A: Just like me, aquavit is the product of centuries of Danish intelligence, ingenuity, and innovation. (Ok, so I’m only 25% Danish, on my mother’s side. But I am 100% willing to drive a cheap joke into the ground.)
As dedicated Three Sheets fans know, aquavit is a traditional Scandinavian distillate, typically 80-90 proof, flavored with a blend of spices that typically includes caraway seeds.
Q: Caraway seeds? For realsies?
A: For really realsies! The first time you drink aquavit, expect the overwhelming sensation that you are drinking a glass of rye bread. If sauerkraut gin or corned-beef Campari ever make it to the marketplace, they will pair up beautifully with aquavit. (Mix all three for a Reubenegroni!).
Don’t get me wrong: this is not as unappealing as it sounds. To the contrary, aquavit is delicious, and today’s distillers produce aquavits that feature a remarkable variety of flavors alongside the traditional caraway (in much the same way that today’s gin producers create a wide array of styles and use a wide range of botanicals and other flavors to complement juniper).
Q: Where does the name come from?
A: Like whiskey (usquebaugh) or eau de vie, aquavit (akvavit) means “water of life” in various Scandinavian tongues.
PLEASE NOTE: Although virtually all of the Swedes, Danes, and Norwegians I have met agree that aquavit is delicious, it is best NOT to engage a person of one Scandinavian nationality on the topic of another nation’s aquavit. PEOPLE HAVE VERY STRONG OPINIONS ABOUT THIS, and they are not especially interested in yours.
Q: I’ll keep that in mind. But just between us, which country’s aquavit is best?
A: Oh, it’s totally the Danish stuff.
Q: Have you had much aquavit from Sweden or Norway?
A: … Not really. But listen: Denmark is the best at EVERYTHING. Copenhagen is, objectively speaking, the most beautiful city on the planet. It has the number one restaurant on the planet. The drugstores sell salted licorice fish! The architecture is stunning, city planning is impeccable, people are friendly and helpful, transport is quick and amazingly clean, and the quality of life is unmatched. As Andy Botwin so succinctly put it, Denmark is “a wonderful wonderful.”
Also wonderful (wonderful): the Danish emphasis on hygge. Roughly translated, hygge means “coziness” or “tranquility.” Sort of like the German Gemütlichkeit, except with more emphasis on minimalist design.
And nothing gets you hygge quite like a couple ounces of aquavit, chilled slightly and tossed back in the immediate vicinity of smørrebrød. The sharp, metallic tang of caraway works in delightful harmony with briny pickled herring or smoky salmon or eel, especially when tied together with a tart squeeze of lemon or a fresh sprig of dill. I’m telling you, the Danes really know how to lunch.
Q: That’s great, but what if I like to do my drinking, you know, after sundown?
A: No problem — it’s dark all the time in Scandinavia!
Q: But what if I like to drink at night, in AMERICA?
A: Ah! Well, fortunately you should be able to find at least two excellent aquavits from Denmark’s best-selling line, both of which are well worth sipping all evening long, without any food accompaniment. Danisco Distillers’s Aalborg Taffel Akvavit (labeled as simply “Aalborg Akvavit” in the Uniteed States)is a straightforward example of the genre, with powerful notes of caraway on both the nose and tongue. A light mouthfeel and long, smooth finish make Aalborg Taffel deceptively easy to drink – for an 80-proof spirit that shares much of its flavor profile with bread.
Americans also have access to Aalborg Jubilaeums, Taffel’s summery cousin and the single finest aquavit I have had the pleasure of tasting. The amber Jubilauems is perfect slightly chilled, with or without food; its dill and coriander note mix brilliantly with the caraway. Expect a nose of honeysuckle and orange, with candy-corn sweetness upront, and then fruit and brown sugar notes before the caraway kicks in.
Plus American distillers are getting in on the act. Chicago’s North Shore makes an Aquavit with a flavor profile that is on the opposite end of the spectrum from Aalborg’s. The North Shore Aquavit has a more viscous mouthfeel, like a vermouth, and a ctirus/juniper nose more reminiscent of gin. The flavor profile also begins with citrus and vanilla before a hint of caraway sneaks in, making the whole experience a close cousin to North Shore’s new-style Gin No. 6. As the label notes, hints of cumin make North Shore suitable for mixing in an “aquavit Bloody Mary.”
Krogstad Aquavit, from Portland’s House Spirits, has a mouthfeel more like Aalborg, with a minty nose to pair with its caraway. If North Shore is the gin of aquavits, then Krogstad (with its strong black-licorice flavors throughout) is the absinthe of aquavits.
Q: Sounds delighful. But I’m more of a cocktail person.
A: You’re still in luck! Aquavit is more than likely popping up on the cocktail menus of your favorite big-city hangouts. Here in San Francisco, 15 Romolo is serving Lo Scandinavo, a Negroni variation pairing aquavit with the sweetness of Carpano Antica and the mutli-layered flavors of Gran Classico.
Lo Scandinavo
1 oz. North Shore Aquavit
1 oz. Gran Classico bitters
1 oz. Carpano Antica
Stir with cracked ice; garnish with a lemon twist.
Back in 2006, Absinthe’s Jeff Hollinger and Rob Schwartzincluded this little aquavit oddity in their book Art of the Bar:
Nickel Rose
1 to 2 dashes Campari
1 ½ oz. aquavit
¼ oz. fresh lime juice
¼ oz. fresh grapefruit juice
¼ oz. Velvet Falernum
2 to 3 dashes peach bitters
Rinse a chilled cocktail glass with the Campari. Shake the remaining ingredients with cracked ice, and strain into the glass. Garnish with an orange twist.
I will happily vouch for the flavor of both cocktails, and for their ability to bring the hygge.
But please, make sure to phrase your inquiries in the form of a question.
(Source: drinkingmadeeasy.com)
