Along the West Jutland Wadden Sea coast lies the scenic island of Fanø. The Wadden Sea is one of the world’s largest tidal areas and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. This is where we live, surrounded by raw nature and rich wildlife. We produce high quality spirits. Spirits that are gaining recognition in both Denmark and abroad.
Fanø Spirits is founded in 2015 by Lars Jensen Schou. Inspired by Fanø’s maritime and naval history and the island’s many natural flavors, he developed Fanø Shipsrum Spirits. Based on a spirit that is distilled in Jamaica and hereafter seasoned and aged on Fanø, Fanø Shipsrum Spirits combines the taste of the Wadden Sea with the exotic Caribbean. Lars’ three children have been part of Fanø Spirits since 2019, that today also produces Fanø Schnapps.
Fanø Shipsrum Spirits has won silver and bronze at the prestigious International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) 2019 for The Mermaid and The Merman respectively and bronze for Gunpowder 57 at IWSC 2020.
Fanø has a maritime culture. From the middle of the 18th century and 100 years onwards, the Fanniks created an impressive sailing fleet, which sailed on all the world’s seas. In the middle of the 19th century, the island had Denmark’s largest fleet after Copenhagen.
The island’s sailors sailed all over the world and brought home many exotic things. Porcelain, silk fabrics, spices and other colonial goods illustrated the close relation between Fanø and a larger world. As part of the ship’s provisions, you always had either rum, snaps, bitters or other spirits to strengthen and reward the crew. Local spices and fruits were often used to refine the taste of the spirit.
Fanø Spirits refines the old tradition and develop our products based on natural flavors and spices. In the best laboratory style, we are constantly testing new, interesting flavors from our own “backyard” and from other – and often warmer – regions. In our development processes, we make small concentrates with different flavors that we mix, store, dilute or otherwise refine. Sometimes we end up in a dead end. Sometimes we find the perfect combination of flavor and taste – and then a new product is born.
