On Hven, a speck of land in the Öresund strait where nothing is ever quite ordinary, a corn whisky broke a few local rules the moment it appeared. MerCurious borrows its name from the quicksilver planet, and it distils almost pure Swedish corn into something closer to bourbon than to any Nordic single malt you have tried.
The Expert's Description
Spirit of Hven MerCurious is a Swedish Corn Whisky matured in new, air-dried American oak casks and bottled at 45.6%.
Behind the bottle stands Henric Molin, the distillery's restless distiller, who built MerCurious as a nod to the American bourbon tradition, using purely Swedish grain as its base. The recipe runs 88 percent corn, topped up with wheat, barley and rye, and every batch is drawn from fourteen casks of air-dried American virgin oak. Depending on each cask's character, the whisky matures for three to eight years before it is blended and bottled.
The idea for Spirit of Hven took shape when Anja and Henric Molin realised this small island in the Öresund had almost everything a distillery could ask for: nutrient-rich soil, a mild microclimate and a position squarely between two countries. The distillery opened in 2008, and MerCurious has become one of its most personal expressions, a corn spirit that insists on doing things its own way.
Tasting notes
Nose
Light, sweet aromas of caramel and ripe apple lead, spiced with a touch of lingonberry. Underneath sits a sweet note reminiscent of freshly baked cornbread.
Palate
The whisky opens almost sparkling and fresh before rounding out into a fuller, sweeter register of vanilla and cocoa. The corn stays clearly present, close to leaning over a pot of just-boiled sweetcorn, balanced by a light tartness that recalls a warm fruit pie.
Finish
Soft and warm, closing on a last trace of sugar-cane syrup and toasted oak.
Specifications
Name: Spirit of Hven MerCurious Swedish Corn Whisky
Distillery: Spirit of Hven
Region/Country: Hven, Sweden
Type: Swedish Corn Whisky
ABV: 45.6%
Size: 50 CL
Cask type: New, air-dried American oak casks
EAN no.: 7350044859441
Flavour profile
Sweet · Creamy · Fruity · Grainy · Lightly spiced
Did you know?
Hven measures barely 7.5 square kilometres, belongs to Sweden, yet sits closer to the Danish coast than the Swedish one. That geographic quirk makes Spirit of Hven one of the most border-crossing distilleries you will ever pour a dram from.
See our full range of Spirit of Hven
