🌱 Caraway spirits and aquavit

Aquavit is a Scandinavian spirit flavoured with caraway or dill seeds (or both), with a strength of at least 37.5 % vol. Caraway spirits, or Kümmel (category 23), have a minimum of 30 % vol., and caraway must predominate in their taste. Both categories are described in Annex I of EU Regulation 2019/787.

Ethyl alcohol is flavoured with a distillate of plants or spices, and essential oils are forbidden for aquavit. Bitter substances must not be clearly predominant, and the dry extract is no more than 1.5 g per 100 ml. Natural flavourings may be added, but the taste must come largely from caraway or dill distillates.

Aquavit is category 24; Svensk Aquavit (Svensk Akvavit) is a protected name of Sweden. Kümmel is category 23; Berliner Kümmel, Hamburger Kümmel and Münchener Kümmel are protected names of German liqueurs and, as liqueurs, are sweeter, with at least 100 g/l of sugar.

Swedes have their own protected name for aquavit, while Kümmel from Berlin, Hamburg and Munich is a German tradition. In traditional cooking, including Ukrainian, caraway and dill are familiar seasonings.

Why it matters to you. “Aquavit” is not necessarily caraway: the law says “caraway or dill, or both”. A Kümmel spirit and a Kümmel liqueur are different categories: the liqueur contains sugar (from 100 g/l). Look on the label for “Kümmel”, “caraway” or “aquavit” and the strength in % vol. WHO: no safe level of alcohol exists.

Other sections of this topic: Vodka and grain spirits; Gin and juniper spirits; Anise spirits; Bitters and bitter spirits; Whisky; Liqueurs; Ukrainian spirit traditions; How spirits are made. All sections are gathered on the “Spirits” page.