{"id":6744,"date":"2017-01-05T10:28:53","date_gmt":"2017-01-05T09:28:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/?p=6744"},"modified":"2017-01-05T10:28:53","modified_gmt":"2017-01-05T09:28:53","slug":"discussing-finnish-whisky-agras-distillerys-director","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/discussing-finnish-whisky-agras-distillerys-director\/","title":{"rendered":"Discussing Finnish Whisky with \u00c4gr\u00e4s Distillery’s Director"},"content":{"rendered":"
One of my 2017 resolutions is to widen my whisky horizons even more than in 2016 and Scandinavia is standing on top of my travel bucket list! Finland has been appearing at the forefront of a new wave of distillers in the Nordic countries, and today, I reached out to Susanna Kankare, CEO at The Agras Distillery<\/a>, to find out more about their current & future endeavours!<\/strong><\/div>\n
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\u00a0(Psst! This article is released under my partnership with The Craft Whisky Club<\/a>, a Scotland-based spirited start-up aiming at showcasing the best of what craft producers have to offer \u2013 delivering artisan spirits and delicacies straight to your doorstep!<\/em>)<\/div>\n
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\u00a0.<\/div>\n
Could you please tell me a bit more about yourself: where do you come from, career background etc. and how did you end up being involved in the Agras Distillery<\/a> project?<\/span><\/strong><\/div>\n

\n<\/span>My background is quite unusual for this industry. I have studied business economics and marketing and I also have bachelor degree of humanities, community educator. At the moment Im studying at Turku University of applied sciences, Masters of art and culture degree. My theme is: combining art and art of distilling \"?\"
\nI have worked is social field over 10 years in different kind of projects and before that also at Nokia.
\nHow I ended up being involved in the Agras Distillery project… I don’t quite know… I have been doing some cooperation with Rekola Brewery before and when they started to search good guys for setting up the distillery they asked me to join them. I have lived in Fiskars Village almost 10 years and I have strong connections and networks in the area and also in Finland in different areas other than distilling insdustry wich are useful in the project.<\/div>\n
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\u00a0\"\"<\/div>\n
What is your personal relationship with spirits: first sipped, any noticeable milestone in your spirited journey, favourite brands\/distilleries\/flavour profiles\/production countries?<\/strong><\/div>\n
\u00a0.<\/div>\n
I’m propably the only distillery CEO in the world who has no background at all from the industry \"?\" But I don’t see that as a problem, on the contrary, it gives me more space and possibilities to create a different spirits brand and investigate the industry in totally new eyes and from totally new angle \"?\"
\nMy own relationship and journey with spirits has just begun. I think that haven’t even tasted quavit before this project. But I do have always loved good whiskies.. smooth, smokey and slightly caramel flavoured \ud83d\ude09<\/div>\n
\u00a0\"Afficher<\/div>\n
\n

What is the overall idea behind the creation of the Agras Distillery<\/a>? Could you please tell us a bit more about the spirits you already produce or wish to produce in the future (production capacity, equipment, raw ingredients, casks experimentations, botanicals etc\u2026 Yeap, I\u2019m curious and I want to know everything )?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

We have something that the rest of the world doesn’t: vast Finnish nature, abundant\u00a0with pure, fragrant herbs that will be found in many of our spirits, giving them a character like no other.<\/p>\n

We are a diverse team with a common goal: to provide the Finnish alcohol market with new\u00a0and exciting taste experiences. A couple of us are the guys behind Rekolan Panimo, one of the\u00a0first in a new wave of Finnish microbreweries. Other members of the team include: the\u00a0Fiskars Villager of the Year 2015, a wild herb and botanical professional from Scotland, as well\u00a0as an award-winning international brand design agency.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

As we learned a tremendous amount from building a brewery and saw the business grow, we always have had the dream to make an \u201cInternationally Finnish\u201d distillery. One that distills unique spirits worthy of the global market,\u00a0and one that brings together the passions and the crafts of the Fiskars community.<\/p>\n

We imagined custom bottles and glasses made by the glassblowers\u00a0of\u00a0Fiskars, we imagined a tasting room adorned with furniture from the local carpenters, we saw bunches of local herbs bundled and ready for their purpose, filling the estate\u00a0with the spirit of nature. We imagined an award-winning\u00a0bespoke line of Akvavit, Gin, Digestif and Whisky – all with unmistakable\u00a0taste profiles, embodying our strong vision.<\/p>\n

And then, just as we know that there are more than 150 000 people who visit Fiskars annually and\u00a0will experience the \u00c4gr\u00e4s Distillery<\/a>, we also know that Finland could certainly use a new face on\u00a0the international spirits scene. As our humility is the soul of our craft, our ambition is the driver\u00a0behind our global brand.<\/p>\n

We have now started our production and at the moment we are producing gin and aquavit. In January 2017 we’ll start to distill whisky. Our capacity is about 50 000l\/year with the equipments that we have at the moment.<\/p>\n

We bought the same equipment than Kyr\u00f6 Distillery when they started their producion; Kothes distilling equipments.<\/p>\n

We are using mainly finnish botanicals and herbs.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

What – in your opinion \u2013 makes the spirits produced at Agras<\/a> unique?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u00c4gr\u00e4s Distillery<\/a> was named after the ancient Finnish God of nature and\u00a0abundance – \u00c4gr\u00e4s<\/a>. Indeed, Finnish nature and no-nonsense purity are\u00a0at the core of our brand. Wild herbs picked by our very own\u00a0wild herb pickers from Fiskars and near areas –\u00a0will be used in many of our strong spirits.\u00a0\u00c4gr\u00e4s Distillery<\/a> will be specializing in unique spirits, standing out as notable representations of signature taste within each spirit\u2019s respective category. Our goals are not to produce yet another Gin, or yet another Whisky; rather, we aim to provide spirits that are truly unique and exciting for both connoisseurs and casual drinkers alike.<\/p>\n

At the forefront of the craft distilling movement globally, \u00c4gr\u00e4s Distillery<\/a> will offer:<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Whisky- <\/strong>2020<\/em><\/p>\n

Smoke is used in Finland in many ways: smoke sauna, smoked fish, smoked cheese, etc, but rarely\u00a0does one see a Finnish single malt smoked whisky. Whisky is an interaction of two different processes –\u00a0distillation and maturation. That maturation takes a long time to do its best work, a minimum of 3\u00a0years, a sweet spot of 10 or 12, and well beyond that in exceptional cases. \u00c4gr\u00e4s will produce its first batches of\u00a0whisky immediately upon commencement of operations. Our single malt smoked whisky will see daylight in 2020.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Akvavit<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Even though\u00a0Finland is\u00a0the world\u2019s largest producer of caraway, we are\u00a0still lacking a good Akvavit, in which caraway\u00a0is the main ingredient. This will no longer be the case! \u00c4gr\u00e4s’ Akvavit is a fresh, lively Akvavit to be enjoyed at any time of the year. The\u00a0spirit have a rich,\u00a0distinct taste of fennel seeds and notes of citrus peel.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Gin<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Get ready for a gin like no other! With bold taste and notes of angelica and clover with higlight notes of lemon peel,\u00a0and a distinct color from the maceration of Finnish juniper berries, this gin will be a true signature. It is rich and full on the the palette. Both enjoyed neat or in a cocktail.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Digestif – <\/strong>Autumn 2017<\/em><\/p>\n

A bitter digestif made of a secret blend of 21 herbs. The rest will be left to the senses.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Not a week passes without a new distillery project being announced or a crowdfunding campaign launched: how do you think Agras<\/a> is standing out within this highly-competitive environment?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I think that we will stand out pretty well. Our mission is to produce the finest hand-crafted spirits made with premium grain, uniquely balanced and infused, craft distilled, aged, and hand bottled at our premises\u00a0by the Fiskars River.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

The world market is hungry for exciting micro distilleries more than ever before. Only in the U.S. the industry has grown 1000% in the last 5 years. In the Nordics, only between 2014 and 2015 the Swedish Box Distillery has doubled its production. Locally, the Finnish distillery Teerenpeli maintained a steady distilling volume of 14\u00a0000 liters per year between 2000 and 2010, but has seen substantial growth from 2010 onwards, currently predicting distilling volumes of 160\u00a0000 liters in 2016. This very same momentum is enjoyed by our colleagues from Kyr\u00f6 Distillery and Helsinki Distilling Company, who have achieved great accomplishments with their Gin spirits and are exceeding their 20\u00a0000\u00a0liter distilling projections.<\/p>\n

Competition for our products here in Finland will come from the Kyr\u00f6 Distillery\u2019s gin, moonshine,\u00a0and rye whisky; Helsinki Distilling Company\u2019s gin, rye whisky, and applejack; as well as\u00a0Teerenpeli\u2019s whisky. Our akvavit will be competing against the other Nordic akvavits, whereas our\u00a0digestif will find competition in the well-known Unicum, Gammel Dansk, J\u00e4germeister and Fernet\u00a0Branca. The whisky market is fiercely competitive. So, in order to keep our promise of bringing\u00a0different products to the market, we will produce a rarely seen Finnish single malt smoked\u00a0whisky.<\/p>\n

While the competitive scape is busy and our brand will be capitalizing on a momentum shared with other good domestic performers, our products are uniquely competitive on their own within their niches and do not compete with each other.<\/p>\n

On both the domestic and international markets, \u00c4gr\u00e4s<\/a> is a distillery that will do more than compete\u00a0simply with products; we will be reaching\u00a0back to the roots of our land and will be evoking\u00a0the craftsmanship of an entire community. We believe that “the world’s best..” is yet to come.<\/p>\n

\"Afficher<\/p>\n

Craft distilling has become incredibly huge \u2013 as there\u2019s still no official definition, how would you define \u201ccraft\u201d and do you think Agras<\/a> fits into this category? Why?<\/strong><\/p>\n

We think that we are more craftier than most of the craft distilleries \"?\"<\/p>\n

For example: We really do know the persons that are picking herbs for us and we also have to go to the forest every time to time to get the ingridients. Our equipment already sets the limits for our maximum production capacity.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

How do you see the future for Agras: how do you picture the distillery in 5\/10 years time? Any crazy dream you\u2019d like to achieve?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I have said before and I will say it again: Our goal is that in 2020 Fiskars will be better known for its craft distilling culture and distilled products than it is now know for Fiskars scissors!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u00a0\"llllll\"<\/p>\n

Pssst! Find out more about whisky-subscription boxes from Craft Whisky Club Here<\/a>!<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of my 2017 resolutions is to widen my whisky horizons even more than in 2016 and Scandinavia is standing on top of my travel bucket list! Finland has been appearing at the forefront of a new wave of distillers in the Nordic countries, and today, I reached out to Susanna Kankare, CEO at The Agras Distillery, to find out more about their current & …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6759,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[532,280],"tags":[1019,218,217,944,215,216,1017,1018,96,1016],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6744"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6744"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6744\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6806,"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6744\/revisions\/6806"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6744"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6744"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewhiskylady.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6744"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}