Yarrow : The herbal note of the summer meadow
Yarrow grows wild on dry meadows and roadsides in Sörmland. Dried, it gives Bråhovda Gin a subtle herbal note with hints of summer flowers.
Production
Origin
An old Swedish beer herb
Yarrow is one of the most common meadow plants in Sweden. It thrives on dry grassland throughout the country and flowers from June well into autumn.
The plant has a long history in Nordic beer, where it was used alongside or instead of hops – one of its old Swedish dialect names is backhumla, “hillside hops”. According to older sources, Carl Linnaeus noted that people in Dalarna flavoured their beer with yarrow. The Latin name Achillea millefolium refers to the hero Achilles and to the leaves: millefolium means a thousand leaves.
Flavour profile
Herbal with a hint of summer flowers
The flower heads of yarrow have a strong scent – an old folk name, galentara, refers to the scent making your eyes water. The aroma compounds vary from plant to plant but are often dominated by pinene and cineole, with a spicy, piney and herbal character. In the gin, yarrow adds a subtle herbal note with hints of summer flowers.
More ingredients
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Wheat
The wheat is grown organically by the Weidman family on the neighbouring farm, Flassbro. Together we have experimented with wheat varieties, which – somewhat surprisingly – have played a very important part in the flavour profile of the final product. The current product uses spring wheat.
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Juniper
The juniper berries have been picked by hand in the cultural landscapes around Bråhovda, over an ever wider area.
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Coriander
Swedish-grown coriander seed is an important contributor to the classic gin character.
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Rhubarb
The rhubarb has been grown and harvested on our own farm in Bråhovda – without pesticides or artificial fertiliser, of course.
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Mint
The mint is harvested and used fresh when we flavour our gin. It is an important part of the freshness in a Nordic gin produced entirely without citrus.
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Lingonberry
Lingonberries from the forests of Sörmland add a tart yet rounded note that strengthens the gin and brings Nordic nature to mind.