Based far in Norway, the Aurora Spirit Distillery is embracing its country’s heritage and just opened a Viking-inspired maturation warehouse, according to The Spirits Business.
We’re already familiar with Bivrost, the brand name for Aurora Spirit. Dubbed the “world’s most northernmost whisky” and named after one of the nine worlds of Norse mythology, their Niflheim Single Malt Whisky single malt is distilled at a very nice 69 °N. It’s made from nordic barley, fermented with glacial meltwater from the Lyngen Alps and stored in ex-sherry, virgin and ex-bourbon casks, which are all matured in underground storage vaults that were previously part of a network of tunnels in a Cold War NATO base.
The new above-ground distillery addition (see above), based on the design of a modern Viking longhouse, was built to purposely face more exposure to the Arctic elements, where temperatures can run warm in the summer but obviously freezing in the winter. The warehouse features a natural turf roof that also protects the buildings from direct sunlight and insulates in colder weather.
No surprise that the brand is reclaiming their Viking past. It’s in the name. Bivrost is two ancient norse words: “Biv” means “shaking” and “rost” means “road” or “path.” As their website notes, it’s considered the Viking word for describing the Northern Lights. “Our viking ancestors thought it was a magical bridge between Midgard and Asgard,” they claim.
Once Covid clears, you can book seaside rooms right near the distillery in “fjord cabins.”
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