Finally it’s time for Sweden to get a limited edition of Absolut. Absolut SVEA is the name on the bottle that is designed and dedicated to the Swedish home market. The effort to find the right, interesting partner with it’s own expression was a long term work which resulted in a collaboration with Fredrik Söderberg, one of Sweden’s most interesting artists.

“Our recent special editions have been very appreciated by consumers around the world and have become collectors’ items. Now we want to take a brand journey back to the home market for Absolut, and create something that reinforces the origin of the brand. The cooperation with Fredrik feels like the perfect match. He created a story filled with mystic and a unique expression for Absolut SVEA” says Anne Palmquist, Sweden Head of Absolut.

When Absolut works with creative partners, faith is always very strong, not to create too many boundaries for the artist. The only mandate given to Fredrik was to interpret the ‘Swedish character.’ Fredrik landed in an understanding of how the Swedes are characterized by large fluctuations between seasons; the cold and the heat, the lightness and the darkness, the summer and the winter.

“It’s been interesting to work with such a great player and to be as present during the whole process from my ideas and sketches to see them being realized in print and finally the production of bottles in Limmared. It’s been a long process and it really feels like we’ve found the right expression. I have often in my artwork various references to the ancient Nordic tradition and that approach felt natural to incorporate in the expression of Absolut SVEA” says Fredrik Söderberg.

The result is a work that clearly bears Söderbergs signature. The front and back of the bottle represent the summer and winter solstice. Around the bottle, you can follow a story line that runs from spring to winter, and just like in the old Nordic stories, the Midgard Serpent embraces the story. The details have different meanings that refer to the Swedish mentality.

Absolut SVEA has a perfect balance of apple and ginger. The apple is one of the oldest fruit and a natural choice in Swedish everyday life and an expression of Swedish late summer. Ginger spice with its long tradition is often used in pastries and is associated with the dark months around Christmas. The combination gives a warmth and spiciness from the ginger, which meets the acidity and freshness of the apple.

Absolut SVEA is available at Systembolaget from May 15.