Vancouver Magazine
Reviews: Magari by Oca Continues to Shape Perfect Pasta on the Drive
Where to Find The Best Brunch in Kits
Eat the Suburbs: The Best Places to Eat in Port Moody
The Best Value B.C. Wines on Shelves Right Now
The Go Drink Me Campaign: Finding the Loire in the Okanagan
Maude Sips Offers a Joyful Entry Point to a New Generation of Wine Nerds
5 Things to Do in Vancouver This Week (April 15-21)
Survey: Help Us Make the Ultimate Vancouver Summer Bucket List
5 Things to Do in Vancouver This Week (April 8-14)
The Sisterhood of Oliver Osoyoos Wine Country
The 2024 Spring Road Trip Destination You Won’t Want To Miss
Escape to Osoyoos: Your Winter Wonderland Awaits
7 Small, Independent Vancouver Brands to Shop Instead of the Shein Pop-Up
What’s in the Background of Vancouver YouTuber J.J. McCullough’s Videos?
7 Rain Boots That Actually Have Some Style
“As far as we’re concerned, it’s a real damned disaster.” So fretted Jorgen Lyth, then-president of Vancouver’s Danish House Society, about the great Christmas akvavit shortage of 2006. During that dark season, the wizards at the province’s Liquor Distribution Branch underestimated the public’s-by which I mean solely ex-pat Scandinavians’-desire for the caraway-infused alcohol. The result was that the holiday traditions of many a Dane, Swede, and Norwegian were ruined.
We have no such worries this year-partly because the LDB has added one paltry label to its shelves, and also because it’s still almost exclusively the purview of Laplanders and their ilk. But mostly it’s because craft distillers have hopped onto all things Nordic and taken an interest in the spirit as an alternative to all the gin they’ve been producing. Unlike juniper-driven gin, akvavit (or aquavit, if you prefer) gets its digestive-aid component from caraway-and, to a lesser extent, dill, fennel, and other infusions. You’ll be thankful for any help with digestion after you’ve put away a pound of gravlax and three plates of turkey with lingonberry stuffing.
Tradition dictates that you down an ice-cold shot with a hearty “Skål!” (You’re actually supposed to drink them in twos-one for each leg, as the Danes say.) But our local bartenders have glommed on to akvavit’s uniquely savoury and complex flavour profile, and they’ve created a raft of cocktails that pair beautifully with food.
The Drink: Den KlosterFrom Thor Paulson, The Diamond,6 Powell St., 604-568-8272
1.5 oz Long Table Långbord Akvavit 2/3 oz yellow Chartreuse3/4 oz freshly squeezed grapefruit juice1/6 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice1/2 oz honey water (made by mixing equal parts honey and hot water, and allowing to cool)Grapefruit peel
Combine all ingredients, except the grapefruit peel, in a cocktail shaker. Shake with ice and fine-strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Express the oils from the grapefruit peel into the drink and discard the peel.