Aquavit
[link] [web] [anal dildo huge penetration] [dreamstreet] [jackson ms airport] [website] [intra corporation] [adobe writer] [angie everhart nude movie] [airport code] [kissimmee discount resort] [adult canadian index movie] [muscle relaxers] [art coffee video] [adult download japanese movie site] [91] [verizon dsl] [moped parts] [asus video card problems] [abilene texas realty new construction] [donor] [magharebia.com] [analog audio device digital video] [scott paper company] [los angeles recording studios] [fine art reproductions] [achat videoprojecteur] [amateur skateboarding video] [amp concert music product video] [interpreter] [website] [amc movie tallahassee theater] [gay movie trailer] [low fat oatmeal cookies recipe] [ronald reagan building address] [bang bus gang gay kimosabi.en.wanadoo.es site] [ass blonde hot pussy video] [arundal mills movie] [website] [nicor gas company] [chilies] [canseco] [website] [anal blonde busty hot movie] [sex with fat obese woman] [plugged in magazine] [anime free hentai xxx] [presences] [nintendo revolutions] [angelina jolie nude video] [animation make movie own] [free redhead xxx pic] [alien encounter ride video] [davenport university] [notre pere] [site] [url] [aventura noche de sexo video] [domain] [transportation in developing countries] [angelina jolie music video] [advanced microsoft word 2003 desktop publishing signature series] [allen movie new tim] [caviezel nelson thomas] [abi titmuss movies free] [amateur naked australian free] [archive city philadelphia] [girls pissing and shitting] [mothers day plants] [internet auto rent and sales] [shaved lesbian preteens fingering] [antonia movie] [berkshire hathaway] [advance city free in movie new screening york] [peritonitis tuberculous] [better business bureau california orange county] [audiovox video] [evil woman tab] [girls in rio] [amazon parrot] [avsvideoconverter] [famous speeches] [wealth at the bottom of the pyramid] [movie clip apollo 13] [attorney blah blah blah email] [child girl models] [windows media player 7 download] [appartments for rent] [vitamin companies] [www] [ashley bryan illustrator] [site] [protometrix] [mobile alabama car dealer] [battlecry] [pocket monocular] [darwin fish] [designer handbag] [free scat stories] [a thousand miles sheet] [australia music video awards] [sistine madonna dali] [sitemap] [the great midwestern flood] [sitemap] [demi moore ashton kutcher] [aclu and video surveillance in claims] [arabian horse training video] [anti gravity propulsion] [nike shox rhythmic trainers] [american psycho movie quote] [2006 6 bible june] [twister movie] [nadia cassini] [deep download full linda lovelace throat version] [adult in movie people want who] [web] [the civil war battle of new orleans] [nec vt560 bulb] [steel cable] [ceasers] [link] [airbus a380 video] [all american reject music video code] [u s tools] [apa citation movie] [microsoft word cover letter] [tax attorneys] [avi video format] [amphetamine barry bond] [daring micro bikini] [ayn movie rand] [foil printing screen] [kenosha homes for sale] [acid bath videos] [telescope mount review] [surveillance cameras voice changer recorders] [apex center colorado] [ashura video] [satin panty movies] [link] [rich dad poor dad book review] [inserting a tampon] [page] [ten foot pole] [nassau county new york] [http] [http] [1968] [amittyville horror the movie] *Swedish and Danish: akvavit,
- Norwegian: akevitt,
From Medieval Latin aqua vitae, "water of life", also spelled aquavite, or akvavit, also called snaps in Denmark.
A Scandinavian flavoured, distilled liquor, ranging in alcohol content from about 42 to 45 percent by volume, clear to pale yellow in colour, distilled from a fermented potato or grain mash, flavored with caraway seeds or cumin seed, others that may be used are lemon or orange peel, cardamom, aniseed, and fennel.
Like vodka, Aquavit is distilled from potato or grain. It is flavoured with herbs such as caraway seeds, anise, dill, fennel, coriander, and grains of paradise, among others. The recipe differs between the different brands, but typically caraway is the dominating flavour. Aquavit usually has a yellowish brown hue, but is available in many other shades of brown, depending on the amount of time it has been aged in oak barrels. Normally, darker colour suggests higher age or the use of young casks, but this may also come from the use of artificial colour (caramel - E150). Clear akvavits called Taffel akvavits are typically matured in old casks which doesn't colour the finished product.
Contents |
Earliest Reference
The earliest known reference to Akvavit is to be found in a 1531 letter from the Danish Lord of Bergenshus castle, Eske Bille to Olav Engelbretsson, the last Archbishop of Norway. The letter, accompanying a package, offers the archbishop "some water which is called Aqua Vite and is a help for all sort of sickness which a man can have both internally and externally."
While this claim for the medicinal properties of the drink may be rather inflated, it is a popular belief that aquavit will ease the digestion of rich foods. In Norway it is particularly drunk at celebrations, such as Christmas or May 17 (Norwegian Constitution Day). In Sweden it is a staple of the traditional midsummer celebrations dinner, usually drunk while singing one of many drinking songs. It is usually drunk as a snaps during meals, especially during the appetizer course— along with pickled herring, crayfish, lutefisk or smoked fish. In this regard it is popularly quipped that akvavit helps the fish swim down to the stomach. It is also a regular on the traditional Norwegian Christmas meals, including roasted rib of pork and stickmeat (Pinnekjøtt). It is said that the spices and the alcohol helps digest the meal which is very rich in fat.
Historical References
"The Fresno Bee Republican", 11th September 1968
"In Norway, aquavit comes in 13 varieties, flavored with such herbs as caraway, anise, star anise, guinea seed, fennel and coriander. In Denmark people add a yellow flower called pericum, tinting the normally colorless aquavit a light orange."
Famous Brands
Among the most important brands are Gilde and Løiten from Norway, Aalborg from Denmark and Skåne and O.P Andersson from Sweden. . While the Danish and Swedish variants are normally very light in colour, most of the Norwegian brands are matured in oak casks for at least one year and for some brands even as long as 12 years. While members of all three nations can be found to claim that "their" style of Akvavit is the best as a matter of national pride, Norwegian Akevitt tend to have, if not the most distinctive character, then at least the most overpowering flavour and deepest colour due to the aging process.
Particular to the Norwegian tradition is the occurrence of Linie akvavits (such as "Løiten Linie" and "Lysholm Linie"). These have been carried in oak casks onboard ships crossing the equator ("Linie") twice before it is sold. While many experts claim that this tradition is little more than a gimmick, some argue that the moving seas and frequent temperature changes cause the spirit to extract more flavour from the casks. Norwegian akvavit distillers Arcus has carried out a scientific test where they tried to emulate the rocking of the casks aboard the "Linie" ships while the casks were subjected to the weather elements as they would aboard the same ship. The finished product was according to Arcus far from the taste that a proper "Linie" akvavit should have, thus the tradition of shipping the akvavit casks past the "Linie" and back continues.
How to drink Aquavit
There are several methods of drinking aquavit. It is surprisingly often shot a glass at a time, and although this is usually attributed to tradition, it is suspected that it has something to do with the fact that some people have problems with the spirit's special taste. Aquavit connoisseurs, on the other hand, tend to treat akvavit like fine whisky, sipping slowly away and delving into flavours and aromas.
Aquavit arguably complements beer better than many other spirits, and in a drinking situation, any quantity of aquavit is usually preceded (or succeeded) by a swig of beer. Enthusiasts generally lament this practice, claiming that the beer will ruin the delicately balanced flavour and aftertaste.
