Exploring the unique relationship between water and distilling in the Faroe Islands, we sit down with Bogi Mouritsen, founder and distillery manager of Faer Isles Distillery. In our conversation, we uncover just how vital the purity and taste of local water are in crafting high-end spirits on these remote islands, and why it plays a key role in their exceptional quality.
Bogi and his later co-founder Dánial Hoydal of Faer Distillery were not aware that, when attending a Scottish Whisky tasting in Copenhagen some years ago, it would somehow change the direction of their careers. According to Bogi, both have a “sensory passion” for all things good, and when they were told about the favorable conditions for Whisky in Scotland, they pondered on how these conditions compared with what the Faroe Islands have to offer. And they concluded that the conditions for whisky are actually better in the Faroe Islands than in Scotland (sorry Scotland).
The conditions we mean are about the salinity and humidity in the air, the winds, and the temperature of the surrounding ocean. As also the taste of Faroe Water is very pure and neutral (as it has almost no minerals in it), they figured that if they use the same technology and same barrels as are used in Scotland for making whisky, plus tap into the knowledge of their wider global Whisky community, friends and consultants, and, last but not least, using only the very best of raw materials, the final product should have a unique taste. A taste which is typical for the Faroe Islands.
It involved some process to arrive from this idea to a real distillery, and it took much passion, networking and research until the partners felt it’s time to start with the project. As inherent to such plans, there was also some cash involved which they did not have, so what to do? Faroe Islanders are known to be creative — the idea of using crowd funding came up in 2019 and hence the partners started a full crowdfunding campaign for the initial investments.
For only 250 Euro investment, the global community of Whisky Lovers could become part of the exclusive founders’ club and were promised in return for their investment, an exclusive membership with many advantages when purchasing the final products.
Also, the investors were to receive a bottle of Gin, a bottle of Whisky and a bottle of “New make”. Explained for non-Whisky experts: In whisky production, “new make” (also referred to as “new make spirit” or “new-make whisky”) is the term used for the freshly distilled spirit that comes off the still before it is aged in barrels. This un-aged spirit is clear, strong in alcohol, and often has a distinct, raw flavor profile that can include fruity, malty, or even harsh notes depending on the distillation process and the ingredients used.
The partners promised to send a small bottle of the new make plus oak chips to put in the liquid, with the idea to have it sit for a few months and to see how the color changes, direction funding club members. This obviously is a gimmick that whisky lovers are very fond of. New make is not meant to be for drinking, but you can observe part of the maturing process – from raw spirit (clear and rather neutral in taste) to the tanned color and taste of barrels infusing the liquid after a few months.
These ideas were well received in the community, and the result was 1100 global fans from 27 countries to join their founders club, which was closed at Dec. 31, 2019. The founders’ club is exclusive to those that chose to join back kin 2019.
The creation of the distillery could begin.
To date, the founders’ club members received their bottle of gin and the small bottle of new make. With the whisky they must wait a bit longer – whisky needs a minimum of 3 years to mature. That means 2 more years to wait and remain curious about the resulting product.
In a second round of “crowdfunding” they sold B-shares to more than 1000 investors, representing around 28 countries. In all, Faer Isles have members and investors from 31 countries. That makes many people around the world eagerly waiting for the first round of whisky to get ready!
Another important product of Faer Isles is a Vodka from ocean subsea water sources – a unique water resource gives the Vodka product a special appeal and makes it stand out from huge competition.
The use of subsea water makes an interesting story: When the latest subsea tunnel to Sandoy was under construction, water was bursting in the construction site with remarkable pressure, which is a normal happening in tunnel construction. But as that pressure did not let up after 3–4 weeks, it turned out to be a source of freshwater from below the ocean. The leak was sealed and Faer Isles was informed that there was an option to use the water for their distillery. And yes, they were interested a lot and grabbed the opportunity!
A raw material like this subsea water is as local Faroese as it can get for a distillery product. They took samples and had them tested – the water was safe for health, but it has a lot of minerals in it which creates a different taste and required to be diluted with regular tap water to balance the high pH value of 9,0 and the minerality. Some of those minerals (Na = sodium) are higher but then the limits of minerality are set with relations to drinking water. No one is going to drink 5 litres of Vodka every day, and if they do, then it won’t be the Na levels that are problematic….
For even more identity, Faer Isles collaborate also closely with TARI seaweed and ad a dash of organic seaweed to the vodka.
The resulting taste is a bit “oceanic” with a dash of salt and seaweed – if you own a bottle of this vodka you know that the water is more than 1000 years old and from the subsea underground. That is truly unique.
As for the source, this subsea water bubble, it is unknown how big it is exactly, but what they know is that it is huge – Faer Isles applied for permission to use the water and got a 10-year contract. They established a well which is not accessible to public, and the water is controlled and approved by the Health Authority. They say, the water will last for at least 100 years….
More information on Faer Isles website
Faer Isles is on the look for sales channels in Germany, Benelux, and Netherlands, so if you can help, please feel free to contact us for more information.
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content design/editing: FrauBlau /Johanna, 6.9.24
