| Sweden: Kanon Organic Vodka - Local by tradition, sustainable by principle Source: kanonvodka.com 400 years ago Gripsholm was known for a different kind of kanon. In 1580 King Karl IV of Sweden built the Åkers Styckebruk foundry in Gripsholm to produce cannons for the Swedish army—and the distillery to make vodka for its workers. Reputed for quality, orders for the cannons of Åkers Syckebruk came from as far as Russia, America, Brazil and even China. Naturally, the high demand for cannons saw an increase in vodka production as well. By 1775, King Gustaf III had monopolized alcohol production to fund his many wars and even borrowed money from the owner of Åkers Styckebruk, Joachim Von Wahrendorff. Unable to pay his debt back to Von Wahredorff, King Gustaf made Gripsholm a Royal Distillery. Freed from state regulation it became the largest distillery in Sweden, producing over a million liters a year and employing nearly 300 workers. In 1792 Gripsholm fell prey to royal whim—King Gustaf was shot and his successor Gustav IV Adolf outlawed the private production of spirits. Having no debt to the distillery himself, he preferred to reap the revenue of a state monopoly. Gripsholm was closed for over 200 years until Sweden lifted the monopoly in the 1990’s and Kanon Vodka owner and founder Peter Hjelm set out to revive the Gripsholm legacy. Construction began in 2008. In 2010, with a production process founded in a tradition started 400 years ago, the first case of Kanon Organic Vodka was shipped to New York. Skål. The Process At Kanon our pure ingredients only need to be distilled once. There’s an old saying that goes if you repeat a lie enough it’ll come true. But to us a lie’s just a lie. And the biggest Vodka lie of all? Multiple distillation = quality, luxury or better taste. It’s one those other vodkas have been toting for some time now. Everything we put in Kanon is local and organic, from our wheat, to the water we source from our own artesian aquifer. We distill with extreme precision and divide each batch into three parts: the head, the heart, and the tail. The heads and tails, which are packed with bad alcohols, are just a recipe for a hangover. We separate these, and extract the heart the pure Ethanol—mix it with water from our artesian aquifer and bottle. That’s it! No additives, no sugar—just the full taste of wheat and artesian water. The taste and character of vodka, normally lost in subsequent distillations, are thereby maintained in perfect balance, with no ‘burn’. So why do other brands distill their product over and over? Their ingredients aren’t pure enough to begin with, and they keep parts of their heads and tails, which means they have to re-distill and use charcoal filtration to remove impurities that are gone after a single distillation of Kanon. We only bottle our first run, and heart is all we will ever put in a Kanon bottle. Our heads and tails? Recycled into bio-gas for local buses. A few choice words “Expertly crafted and distilled, Kanon shows that they are much more than a play at the ‘organic’ market, with one of the more impressive vodkas we’ve tasted. Very highly recommended.” - drinkspirits.com “This is going to be the Whole Foods revolution at the bar! ...and this is real vodka. Served from the freezer, its viscosity is alluring and its subtle, natural flavor is unprecedented. A truly unique find.” – bite of the best “...‘Green’ credibility isn’t worth much if the booze tastes like gasoline and luckily for all involved, our extensive testing confirms that this is a great tasting, certified organic vodka, neat or mixed, and it’s reasonably priced... very sweet indeed!” – the alternative consumer Gripsholm destillery Beside the furnace of an epic foundry, A storied tradition dating back to 1580... In the 16th century when the Åkers Styckebruk cannon foundry was in production, mountains of charcoal fueled fires that burned day and night. The owners relied on men who worked continuously to maintain the temperatures. Keen to keep their workers close, and aware of the local love for drink, they built a distillery on the premises. To men who arrived on time and didn’t stray from their duties they gave coins that could be redeemed for vodka. At the height of production Gripsholm employed 280 men, and produced over a million liters of vodka annually. It was the largest distillery in Sweden. Today it is one of the most sustainable distilleries in the world. Local by tradition, sustainable by principle. 400 years ago distilling with wheat from a local source was self- evident. And we took that as our starting point. Our entire production process, from wheat to bottle, is done inside a three-mile radius. We use water exclusively from our own artesian aquifer, and wheat sourced directly from local farmers who grow according to EU and USDA organic standards. They never use synthetic fertilizers or pesticides, and we never spur our distillation along with synthetic processes. We love our past, but we do some things better now. Responsibility to the environment is a no brainer for us. We hope the great taste of our good practice will show people that ‘green’ is anything but boring. Our leading-edge technology is pushing industry standards. Our entire distillery is run on electricity sourced from wind and waterpower. Our offices are heated from steam produced in the fermentation process. Our by-products are reused in other industries or recycled into bio-fuel for local buses. Our bottles are made from recycled glass, and are 100% recyclable. It doesn’t get much greener than that. More information: http://www.kanonvodka.com Tip: OrganicPortal Sverige - Ekologisk Livsmedel & Dricka 22.01.2012 TOP 3 most read news: India: Eco-tourism, organic farming key areas says Nobel Laureate Joseph E Stiglitz of Columbia University Besuchen Sie OrganicPortal Newsroom Deutschland
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News - Sweden: Kanon Organic Vodka - Local by tradition, sustainable by principle
Written by Niels Thrap
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