Norwegian coastal cruise operator Hurtigruten is again ready to submerge the ultimate wine cellar in the Arctic.
As part of the company's 130th anniversary celebration at the
beginning of this year, Hurtigruten sea-aged 1,700 bottles of sparkling
wine – Havets Bobler (Bubbles of the Sea) – at a depth of 34 metres, off
the Norwegian coast.
The company is now repeating the process – and in an even more extreme manner.
A whopping 4,500 bottles will be located at a secret location under
the sea, somewhere off the coast of Finnmark, the northernmost region of
Norway, where the North Cape, the northernmost point of mainland
Europe, makes its chilly home.
The bottles will be aged on the seabed for a minimum maturation
period of six months north of the Arctic Circle beneath first the
Northern Lights and then, as seasons turn, beneath the Midnight Sun.
Guests aboard Hurtigruten ships will later get to appreciate the
ice-aged wine while cruising what many consider is the world's most
beautiful coastline.
“It's truly an experience you won't find anywhere else,” says André
Pettersen, chief product officer and head of hotel operations at
Hurtigruten.
Havets Bobler is a Classic Cuvee, 2018 vintage, made using
traditional methods from hand-harvested grapes of Pinot Noir, Pinot
Meunier, and Chardonnay. This exclusive creation is crafted by the
Rathfinny Wine Estate, a family-run vineyard located in Sussex, England.