From the hardy winter wheat that grows in the region, to water from our own deep well, Åhus provides the distillery with the raw material to produce the millions of bottles of ABSO...

From the hardy winter wheat that grows in the region, to water from our own deep well, Åhus provides the distillery with the raw material to produce the millions of bottles of ABSOLUT VODKA sold around the world. Centuries of experience have shown that winter wheat produces a superior vodka, which is why every bottle of ABSOLUT VODKA contains over one kilo (two pounds) of grain.

More than 400 years of vodka-making tradition stands behind every bottle of ABSOLUT VODKA. The precursor of today’s ABSOLUT VODKA, “Absolut Rent Bränvin” (Absolute Pure Vodka), was introduced in 1879 by the Swedish entrepreneur and legend, Lars Olsson Smith, also known as “The Vodka King”. In fact, the medallion on every bottle of today’s ABSOLUT VODKA bears his portrait. ABSOLUT VODKA, and all other members of the ABSOLUT VODKA family – ABSOLUT PEPPAR, ABSOLUT CITRON, ABSOLUT KURANT, ABSOLUT MANDRIN, ABSOLUT VANILIA, ABSOLUT RASPBERRI, ABSOLUT APEACH, ABSOLUT RUBY RED, ABSOLUT PEARS and ABSOLUT MANGO – are distilled hundreds of times before they can be called ABSOLUT VODKA. This process of continuous distillation, introduced in Sweden by L O Smith and perfected through today, guarantees a perfect vodka. The ABSOLUT VODKA flavors are made by blending the vodka with only natural flavors. No sugar is added.

Swedish winter wheat
Every day about 600 tons of winter wheat arrive at the Nöbbelöv Distillery. The wheat is grown in Skåne in southern Sweden and comprises about 20 percent of the total harvest of wheat in this province. ABSOLUT makes the same high demands on its wheat as the food industry, and the suppliers must follow specific demands for minimizing the negative effects of cultivation on the environment. ABSOLUT is Sweden’s largest food and beverage export, and to satisfy the world’s demand for ABSOLUT, 125,000 tons of winter wheat is harvested every year. Farmers in southern Sweden combine age-old tradition with the latest in agricultural technology to produce some of the finest winter wheat in the world. This winter wheat is what gives ABSOLUT its smooth, mellow character and distinct hint of grain. Sweden has one of the oldest vodka traditions in the world and it is no coincidence its roots are in southern Sweden, where the climate is ideal for growing winter wheat and a long tradition of environmental farming ensures the most natural conditions possible. The several hundred farmers in southern Sweden contracted by ABSOLUT plant their wheat in September and October. The wheat germinates and grows five to ten centimeters during the mild months of fall. When the frost sets in, the wheat stops growing and lies dormant all winter. In the spring, when the sun and warmth return, the wheat continues to grow – but now at an accelerated pace. The winter wheat being planted this fall will be harvested in August next year and used to produce next year’s supply of ABSOLUT. The wheat is transported from the nearby wheat fields to The ABSOLUT distillery in Nöbbelöv near Åhus, where it is first grinded, then combined with water from the company’s own well. Åhus is the one source for every bottle of ABSOLUT enjoyed throughout the world.

ABSOLUT spring water
Water to blend ABSOLUT comes from our own well in Åhus. The water from this artesian spring dates back as far as the Stone Age. The clean rains that fell over Åhus long before pollution many thousands of years ago, slowly trickled down through layer after layer of moraines and limestone. It was enriched on its way with healthy minerals and salts and eventually formed this artesian spring of perfectly clear water 200 meters below the ground. This is the only water we ever use to blend ABSOLUT to perfection.

Production Procedure
The 600 tons of winter wheat that arrive at the Nöbbelöv Distillery every day is cleaned and milled in hammer mills that can process up to 18 tons of wheat per hour.

FERMENTATION
The milled wheat is mixed with the pure spring water to form a mash. An enzyme is also added (a biocatalyst), which helps the starch in the wheat to break down into sugar. For three hours the mash is heated to a maximum of 90° Celsius (203° Fahrenheit). The heat releases the starch from the wheat and speeds up the breakdown of starch into sugar. The heat and the long “cooking time” also helps kill any bacteria. Before the fermentation process begins, the mash is chilled and poured into enormous vessels called fermenters, which have a capacity of around 600,000 liters. Yeast is added at the same time. The yeast transforms the freed sugar into ethanol (alcohol). The mash ferments for two days; by then the sugar has been used up and the alcoholic content in the mash is 10 percent.

The fermented mash is pumped into the raw spirit distillation process. The alcohol that forms is distilled off and concentrated to 87 percent by volume, so-called raw spirit. On average the distillery at Nöbbelöv produces 150,000 liters of raw spirit every day, all year round.

Continuous distillation
The raw spirit is further distilled in order to achieve the correct purity. The method used is called continuous distillation; this implies that the spirit is distilled more than a hundred times in order to achieve the highest possible quality. This revolutionary method was introduced in Sweden by “the King of Vodka” Lars Olsson Smith in 1879, and has given its name to ABSOLUT VODKA – an “absolutely pure vodka”. The last remnants of the fusel oil and other impurities disappear at this point, and after distillation the spirit is 96 percent alcohol, now called fine spirit. The entire process takes a little longer than three days.

Nutritious by-product
What’s left when the spirit has been distilled off contains water, protein and fibers and is called “stillage”. It is used as animal feed and is very nutritious. About 1,500 tons of stillage is produced in Nöbbelöv every day. This feeds 30-35 000 cows every year!

600,000 bottles a day
On average 600,000 bottles of ABSOLUT are produced every day in Åhus.

Most ABSOLUT VODKA bottles are made in Limmared not far from Åhus, but production also takes place in France. Every day between 10 and 20 trucks arrive in Åhus carrying glass.

Inspection and cleaning
All bottles are manually checked. Two hundred bottles per hour pass by two inspectors, working a maximum 30 minutes at a time, to ensure that the bottles are perfect. Only the best is good enough when cleaning an ABSOLUT VODKA bottle. Which is why we use – ABSOLUT VODKA of course. Washing out the bottle is purely a safety measure to ensure that no foreign particles are left in the bottle before it is filled.

Bottling
After washing, the bottle is filled with the scheduled variety of ABSOLUT VODKA. The same bottling machine is used for all flavours and is washed automatically between flavours. The bottling machines can fill up to 240 bottles per minute. After filling the bottle, it’s time to put on the cap. These come in three different sizes, 28, 33 and 35 mm. After capping, the bottle is sealed, the modern seal replacing the seals of former times. The seal is now made of plastic, which is heated and “shrunk” on to the bottle and the cap. The most intricate part of the whole bottling process is fixing the famous medallion showing “the King of Vodka” L.O. Smith on to the bottle. This must not vary by more than 0.5 mm. The bottle is positioned correctly with the aid of marks on the glass, and then the medallion is attached. Apart from the medallion, there is also a back label and in certain cases an importer’s label on the bottle.

Absolut quality assurance
Several automatic checks are carried out during the bottle’s journey along the bottling lines. Yet the entire process also ends with a manual check of the bottles. Everything is done to ensure maximum quality. The bottles are then packed into cartons of 6, 12 or 24 bottles each. Each bottle, even in production, has a pre-determined destination in the world. But first it has to go to the high-bay storage facility in Åhus.

Efficient storage and distribution
In the high-bay storage facility in Åhus the ABSOLUT bottles await shipment out into the world. On average 700 pallets of bottles end up here every day, and there’s room for a maximum of 15,000 pallets. Approximately 600,000 bottles leave the storage facility every day. Most of them go out into the world through Åhus Harbor, and about a fifth of them leave storage by truck.

Boosting production capacity
ABSOLUT VODKA has further increased its production capacity by opening the new bottling plant, ABSOLUT SATELLIT, in Åhus. Built to handle high-capacity production efficiently and with maintained quality control, the new plant will start with a capacity of 20 million bottles a year – with one shift. An additional tapping line is planned for the existing bottling hall. The room for blending and storage is capable of handling as many as four bottling lines. The total area is 19,000 square meters. The architecturally beautiful and functional building, ABSOLUT SATELLIT, has been built just outside Åhus in order to meet the steadily growing demand for ABSOLUT VODKA. The environment, infrastructure, logistics, safety and function were all taken into consideration in the design of the building. Appearance and style have also been important elements and much effort was made to create attractive interior and exterior environments.

ROOM FOR FURTHER IMPROVEMENT
Initially, 20 people will work at ABSOLUT SATELLIT in Åhus. The opening of the new plant will also introduce new work methods for bottling. The duties of operators and technicians have been redefined to give the staff the possibility to develop and to make additional room for improvements. The positions have been expanded to cover a larger area of responsibility and the staff has also received comprehensive training in all equipment.

ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY
The environment has been a key issue in the design of the new bottling plant. As a result it meets the laws and regulations that allow it to be classified as completely environmentally friendly. All waste is collected and analyzed before it is destroyed or released into the public sewer system. Waste from the plant is sorted. District heating with 97 percent renewable energy is used to heat the bottling plant. Traffic intensity in central Åhus is decreased, with less noise and disturbance to nearby residents. The investment in ABSOLUT SATELLIT in Åhus is an additional investment in the further expansion of the brand.