Review: Skaalvenn Vodka
Skaalvenn Vodka is one of four spirits hand crafted at the Skaalvenn Distillery in Brooklyn Park Minnesota. The others include Skaalvenn Rum, Habanero Rum, and Aquavit. They also bottle a bourbon but that is distilled in Indiana. Tyson and Mary Schnitker started distilling in 2015 and have grown the business significantly since opening. They now also operate a Japanese Cocktail Bar serving craft cocktails made from their craft spirits. The Skaalvenn name is actually a Norweigen greeting which translates to “Cheers friends” in English. Skaalvenn Vodka is made from locally grown wheat. When they started crafting their spirits they knew they wanted to make their vodka from wheat but they had trouble finding a source so they placed an add in Craigslist. Fourth Generation farmer Scott Lee responded and after touring his family owned Lee’s Seed Farm in Benson Minnesota they knew they had found their local source for wheat. After harvesting, the wheat is milled and delivered to the distillery where they mash and ferment the wheat and yeast for three days. The spirit is distilled in two different stills including a custom copper still. The vodka is carbon filtered before hand bottling. Read more 