Absolut Haring Vodka

Absolut is made in Åhus, in southern Sweden, from local winter wheat and water drawn from a deep well in the same district. The brand built its reputation on continuous distillation, a column-still method that runs without interruption and yields a consistently mild, pure and balanced spirit rather than a heavily characterful one. Wheat gives a soft, rounded mouthfeel, and at 40% by volume the result is clean enough to sit behind almost any mixer. This Haring edition wraps that familiar liquid in embossed glass reproducing the artist's 1986 figures, signature and a reworked Absolut medallion.

The nose is mild and fresh with a fine cereal note. The palate is soft and balanced with a touch of sweetness, and the finish is smooth and clear. Because the spirit is built to carry flavour rather than dominate, put it into a Cosmopolitan: 40ml vodka, 15ml triple sec, 15ml lime and a splash of cranberry, shaken hard and served up, the wheat softness rounding out the citrus and cranberry tang.