Brennivín Jólín 2020 Christmas Aquavit
Reykjavík, Höfuðborgarsvæði, Iceland
- ABV
- 40%
- Base spirit
- Grain (unspecified)
- Color
- Gold
- Style
- Barrel-Aged Aquavit, Christmas Edition
- Maturation
- 1 year 3 months in Ex-Sherry cask
Brennivín Jólín 2020, also presented as The Real Christmas Spirit, is a limited Christmas-edition Icelandic aquavit released under the Brennivín brand. The expression was matured in sherry casks for 15 months and bottled at 40% ABV in a 700 ml format. The front label identifies it simply as “Sherry Cask Aquavit.”
The 15-month maturation is stated directly on the bottle. According to the producer, the maturation brings mild notes of sherry and vanilla alongside the more pronounced caraway character of Brennivín. The back label similarly describes the cask influence as adding subtle richness and presents the aquavit as a companion to Nordic foods including rye bread, pickled fish and smoked meat.
Jólín 2020 was an individually numbered release of 450 bottles. The neck strip carries the maturation statement together with the bottle number in the format 2020J-xxx/450. Vínbúðin recorded 119 bottles sold under product number 10813 during 2020, a retail sales figure rather than the total edition size.
Bottle gallery
About the producer
Kveldúlfur Distillery
Reykjavík, Höfuðborgarsvæði, Iceland
Kveldúlfur Distillery is the current producer of Brennivín and operates within the Ölgerðin Egill Skallagrímsson group. Vínbúðin identifies Kveldúlfur Distillery as the producer of the standard 40% Brennivín, while Ölgerðin is listed separately as supplier and owns the Brennivín brand.
Kveldúlfur Distillery is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ölgerðin. Ölgerðin’s financial statements list Kveldúlfur Distillery ehf. among the companies owned 100% by the group, alongside Borg Brugghús and several other beverage businesses.
The wider Ölgerðin business was founded in Reykjavík in 1913 by Tómas Tómasson and developed from a small brewery into Iceland’s largest producer of alcoholic beverages. Today the group owns a number of major Icelandic drinks brands, including Brennivín, Gull and Boli, while Kveldúlfur functions as the distilling entity associated with Brennivín production.
The relationship between Brennivín and Ölgerðin is therefore more recent than the spirit itself. Brennivín originated as a state-produced spirit in 1935; after ÁTVR ended alcohol production in 1992, production moved into private hands. The current structure places production with Kveldúlfur Distillery and brand ownership and distribution with Ölgerðin.
Ölgerðin also manages Brennivín as an international brand. Company filings state that the Brennivín word and figurative marks are registered in the European Union and the United Kingdom, while the Brennivín word mark is also registered in Canada.
