Craft Spirits · Finland
Craft Spirits Distilleries in Finland
Tour 4 craft spirits distilleries in Finland. Each offers visits, tastings or experiences you can book directly — including Teerenpeli Distillery, The Helsinki Distilling Company, Kyrö Distillery.
4distilleries
About craft spirits distilleries in Finland
Finland's craft spirits scene is young, small and proudly distinctive, shaped by a handful of independent distilleries that have emerged since the 2010s. For much of the past century, spirits production was tightly bound up with state control and the retail monopoly Alko, so the arrival of confident, ingredient-led craft distillers marks a genuine shift. What ties the scene together is an unmistakably Nordic palette: rye, barley and clean groundwater as building blocks, alongside foraged botanicals and berries such as lingonberries, sea buckthorn, birch and meadowsweet. The producers here cover the full craft spectrum. Kyrö Distillery in Isokyrö built its name on 100% Finnish rye, distilling gin while waiting for its whisky to mature. Teerenpeli in Lahti is Finland's largest malt whisky distillery and also makes gin. The Helsinki Distilling Company, the capital's first distillery in over a century, hand-crafts gin, whisky and other spirits from local ingredients, while Nagu draws on its archipelago setting. Together they make Finland a rewarding, compact destination for anyone curious about new-wave Nordic distilling.
Finnish craft spirits: styles and how they're made
Finnish craft spirits span gin, whisky, vodka, aquavit and liqueurs, but they share a common philosophy built on local grain, pure water and foraged botanicals. Rye is the signature ingredient at Kyrö, used across its whisky and gin and reflecting a crop grown in Finland for millennia. Teerenpeli, by contrast, focuses on single malt whisky made from Finnish barley malt and groundwater from the Salpausselkä ridge, running traditional copper pot stills as the country's largest malt distillery. The Helsinki Distilling Company hand-crafts a range of premium spirits, leaning on local botanicals such as lingonberries, birch leaves and sea buckthorn. The defining challenge, and opportunity, is the short Nordic foraging season, which pushes distillers to capture summer flavours precisely. The result is a craft scene where provenance and ingredient quality matter more than volume or marketing gloss.
Where to taste Finnish craft spirits
For a country its size, Finland's craft distilleries are reasonably easy to weave into a trip. The Helsinki Distilling Company sits in Teurastamo, the capital's former abattoir and now a food and drink quarter, making it the most accessible starting point. Teerenpeli's brewery and distillery in Lahti, with its visitor centre, is a short journey north and combines whisky, gin and beer under one roof. Kyrö Distillery in Isokyrö, in Ostrobothnia, is further afield but central to the story of modern Finnish distilling, while Nagu rewards travellers exploring the Turku archipelago. Because routine spirits retail runs through Alko, distillery visits offer something the shops cannot: direct contact with the makers, limited releases, and the chance to taste before you buy. A logical route pairs Helsinki with Lahti, adding Kyrö or Nagu if time allows.
What to expect on a tour
Expect a hands-on, ingredient-focused experience rather than mass-market polish. Tours typically walk you through the base grain, whether rye at Kyrö or barley malt at Teerenpeli, the role of Finnish water, and how foraged botanicals are gathered and used during the brief summer. At Teerenpeli you can see traditional copper pot stills at work in Finland's largest malt distillery, while The Helsinki Distilling Company offers an urban, craft-bar atmosphere. Tastings usually range across a distillery's portfolio, which might include gin, whisky and other spirits, with guidance on how each reflects its ingredients. Several sites combine the visit with a bar, restaurant or shop, and the warm, often sauna-tinged Finnish hospitality tends to make the experience memorable.
Frequently asked
- What counts as Finnish craft spirits?
- The term covers gin, whisky, vodka, aquavit and liqueurs made by independent Finnish distilleries, typically using local grain, clean groundwater and foraged botanicals. The modern scene has grown rapidly since the 2010s.
- Which Finnish craft distilleries can I visit?
- Listed producers include Kyrö Distillery in Isokyrö, Teerenpeli Distillery in Lahti, The Helsinki Distilling Company in Helsinki, and Nagu Distillery in the Turku archipelago. Helsinki and Lahti are the most accessible for most visitors.
- Is Finland known for whisky as well as gin?
- Yes. Teerenpeli in Lahti is Finland's largest malt whisky distillery, producing single malt from Finnish barley malt and local groundwater, while Kyrö makes rye whisky. The Helsinki Distilling Company also produces whisky alongside gin.
- What ingredients define Finnish craft spirits?
- Rye and barley feature heavily as grains, alongside pure groundwater and foraged botanicals such as lingonberries, sea buckthorn, birch leaves and meadowsweet, all reflecting Finland's landscape and short summer.
- Where can I buy Finnish craft spirits?
- Everyday retail of spirits in Finland is handled by the state retailer Alko, but distilleries usually sell directly from their shops, which is a good way to find limited or distillery-exclusive releases.
- Can I tour several Finnish distilleries in one trip?
- Yes, with planning. A natural route pairs The Helsinki Distilling Company in the capital with Teerenpeli in Lahti, and you can add Kyrö or Nagu if you have time to travel further from Helsinki.