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The first time I tried Akvavit I hated it... That caraway kick in the crotch was the nastiest liqueur I'd ever tasted... Today I love it. It's easily my favorite shot. Unfortunately, it's a bit hard to find out here in Colorado. Luckily, Argonaut sells O.P. Anderson and Linie, but that's all! Wikipedia had a list of producers but none that I'd really heard of. I'm sure Akvavit has complex subtleties that can compare to scotch, whiskey, or wines.

Now before I start shipping bottles of this stuff out of the remote corners of Scandinavia, I thought I'd ask the LTH experts if they had any input... Thanks in advance!

~GS

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Greasy Spoon

The only one I've had is the North Shore Aquavit, and I think it is great. It definitely has the caraway up front, but it is much deeper than that. Not for everyone, but it is a very high quality spirt.



Binny's online store link

SSDD

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Linie is very good. It has a very strong taste of caraway. It is so named because the aquavit is put on a ship that crosses the equator (the linie) twice on a trip from Norway to Australia and back. It was named the best in show white spirit at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition ( http://www.sfspiritscomp.com/ ) in 2009. Definitely worth the $30. Skal.

(Scandinavia is not that remote, you know...)

I'd be happy to help you out with any information and experience I may have with any potential Swedish purchases.

Caraway, dill and fennel are traditional flavorings.

Looking at your list:

"Fläder" (or elderberry blossom) makes for a citrusy, flowery and slightly sweet shot. "Pors" (Bog myrtle) is also lighter, flowery and somewhat sweet. "Skåne" has the exact same flavoring as O.P. Andersson but only half as much. The list doesn't include my favorite bitter flavorings. I've brought bottles of both "Piratens besk" (scroll down one picture) and "Bäska droppar" to Chicago. Both flavored with wild Swedish wormwood.

You can also make your own, Greasy Spoon! I normally use a slightly weaker vodka (37-38% is ideal) as you can enjoy and extra shot or two and the lower alcohol doesn't deaden the flavors as much. Pour in a few tablespoons of caraway, fennel (heck, add a bit of lemon peel and piece of cinnamon stick, too!) and let the bottle sit at room temperature for a week or so. If it ends up too strong, simply dilute with a little more vodka. Adding a cube of sugar (regardless of the flavorings) can smooth things out a little, too. I've made my own St. John's wort snaps as well as wormwood (more than a day with one sprig of wormwood makes it unbearably bitter, though).

A few St. John's wort shots:







(The yellow flowers have a red coloring inside that leeches out and makes for a beautiful, whiskey-colored snaps after a week or so.)

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Bridgestone, you have inspired me with this amazing post.... I'm gonna do it!!! I'm gonna try and make my own 'Rocky Mountain' Akvavit!

It is quite likely however that I will fail miserably at this task. These sorts of endeavors have had little success for me in the past... But to hell with it, I'll give it try anyway! And if all else fails I will find a bottle of Piratens Besk or Bäska droppar.

Thanks so much for taking the time Bridgestone. Your post is much appreciated.

~GS

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Greasy Spoon

That's wonderful news, Greasy Spoon! Please let us know how things go. And, of course, don't hesitate to ask if you'd like more help. I've got books and books of snaps-making ("snaps" is the common Swedish term for flavored vodka) at home we can use as reference.

You may want to work on your akvavit's name, though. Or at least don't mention it to Kennyz...

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So after reading about akvavit (aquavit) in several places (and laughing at the Aquavit line in "Shit Bartenders Say"), I finally took the plunge and bought my first bottle of Linie at Binny's the other night. I'm pretty sure I tried a taste at the LTH Julboard at Tre Kroner and remember being intrigued, but we don't go out to bars and so I didn't have a chance to try it at bars or restaurants. Buying the whole thing was a commitment I had to work up to... but boy, am I glad I did!

I searched and found this thread... so I'd like to find out if there are any other aquavit lovers out there, maybe see if they'd like to share some of their favorite ways to drink it (I've tried it straight and in an aquavit-and-tonic so far, loved 'em both), and comments on other brands. And I see some of you have actually made your own!

And it also looks like there's a local producer... drat, their website SAYS they distribute through Binny's, but the only option where we visited was the Linie.

So... anyone else who isn't bored by aquavit out there?

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I tried a "Bloody Norseman" at 2Sparrows one day, and was immediately hooked...it was a North Shore aquavit-based bloody mary, with house-made mix that was heavy on the dill. The caraway & dill worked together so amazingly, I went out and bought a bunch of tomato juice and a huge bunch of dill and made my own dill-heavy bloody mary mix. Unfortunately, I never got around to buying the aquavit, and used all the homemade mix with regular old vodka.

But the original drink is still in my head, and a bottle of aquavit will find its way home with me one of these days for sure.

Ooh, Khaopaat, that sounds lovely... I think we might have Bloody Mary fixings, too!

One thing Chouxfly mentioned was perhaps mixing it with San Pelligrino Chinotto, the bitter orange cousin of Aranciata. You either hate or love Chinotto, and I think the fact that it is not sweet will be great with the herbal flavors of the Linie. Now I just gotta get back to Nottoli's and get it!

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As Mamagotcha mentioned we tried a Aquavit cocktail with Chinotto and it worked really well. This is a quite herbal drink, that is very refreshing yet not at all sweet.

Santa Goes To Vegas
1 oz Linie Aquavit
1/2 oz lime juice
4 oz Chinotto

Combine ingredients over ice cubes in a highball glass and gently stir. Garnish with a few cut strips of fresh basil leaf.

(The name is from the design on the shirt I was wearing when we came up with it.)

Given that Aquavit is simply flavored vodka, the potential to whip up your own stuff at home and mix and match is almost unlimited. I made up a batch of garlic/dill stuff that made a spectacular bloody Mary - until I developed an odd craving to sip it by itself, fresh from the freezer. Making your own also allows you to control the quality of the vodka.

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