so, aquavit was born. The trade monopoly ended in 1786, and thirty years later modern distillation techniques made their way to Scandinavia. Of course, by then the taste for various aquavits had already been well established in all the Nordic countries. Cleaner spirits were available, but people still preferred them flavored with herbs. Although the trade monopoly was no more, the Danish Distilling Company had a monopoly on distillation in Denmark and the territories it controlled, including Iceland. Icelanders were forbidden to distill their own spirits. In 1908, a prohibition referendum was passed in Iceland. Starting in 1912 all imports of alcohol would cease. There would be no more beer, no more wine, and no more distilled spirits. Any remaining stocks of alcoholic beverages had to be consumed or destroyed by 1915. In 1918 Iceland regained its independence from Denmark. Absent prohibition, the Danish monopoly on distillation would no longer apply. In 1935, prohibition was partially repealed. Once again spirits would be allowed, but the production, distribution, and sale would be controlled by the now independent government. Beer would remain illegal until March 1, 1989. As the Icelanders were no longer captive to the Danish Distilling Company, they could make whatever they wished. The Icelandic government set up the State Alcohol Company of Iceland, known as the "AVR", which still exists today as the "ATVR". One of the few spirits the AVR decided to produce was caraway-flavored Brennivín. In contrast to the colorful French and Italian spirits labels at the time, the government of Iceland demanded a stark black and white label for the newly legal spirit. The green bottle displayed a white skull on the black label in order to warn against consumption (later replaced by the map of Iceland and a clear bottle). Therefore, it was sometimes called "svarti dauði" (black death). The intention was to be visually unappealing, and limit demand. It didn't work. For decades, Brennivín was the drink of choice for Icelanders and became a pop-culture treasure brought home by travelers. In 2014, it was finally legally imported to America. And by then, Brennivín had practically become a symbol of Iceland itself. Serving Brennivín is typically served cold as a shot, with a beer, or as a base for cocktails. It often takes the place of gin in classic cocktails, or of a lighter rum in tropical drinks. It is also the traditional accompaniment to