Løiten Brænderi was founded in 1855 as a cooperative of small farm distilleries, pooling the region's surplus potatoes into raw spirit. The man who made it famous was Anders Løwlie, manager from 1865 to 1924, who became obsessed with perfecting akevitt. He experimented endlessly with spice blends and went on expeditions to find the best herbs. In 1874 he established a separate distillation facility in Oslo to refine the spirit, and it was there that Løiten's signature recipes reached their final form.
When the state alcohol monopoly Vinmonopolet took over in 1927, only four akevitt brands survived the cut: Gammel Oppland, Lysholm, Simers, and Løiten. The recipes are still used today by Arcus, unchanged. The distillery itself operated until 1995 and is now a museum and visitor centre. The original 1855 building is hard to miss: a thirty-bay, three-storey structure with the chemical formula for making alcohol spelled out in wrought-iron letters across the facade. Inside, a theatre production called "En Akevisitt" has been performed over 6,300 times, making it the most performed theatre piece in Norway.
When the state alcohol monopoly Vinmonopolet took over in 1927, only four akevitt brands survived the cut: Gammel Oppland, Lysholm, Simers, and Løiten. The recipes are still used today by Arcus, unchanged. The distillery itself operated until 1995 and is now a museum and visitor centre. The original 1855 building is hard to miss: a thirty-bay, three-storey structure with the chemical formula for making alcohol spelled out in wrought-iron letters across the facade. Inside, a theatre production called "En Akevisitt" has been performed over 6,300 times, making it the most performed theatre piece in Norway.