Borkum Riff
Encyclopedia
Borkum Riff is a brand of pipe tobacco manufactured in Denmark
by Swedish Match
.
located at 53° 58' N, and 6° 22' E in Heligoland Bay off the Dutch coast in the North Sea
. It was a landmark for seafarers and was well-known to Swedish radio listeners, as weather reports mentioned Borkum Riff several times a day. The former lightship called Borkum Riff was used from 1960 to 1964 as the first radio ship of Radio Veronica
, which became the first off-shore radio station in the Netherlands.
During the 1960s, a pipe tobacco was launched in Sweden with brand name Borkum Riff. The tobacco was a rough cut blend of Virginia and Burley tobaccos. Initial sales were low but when a whiskey flavour was introduced, sales increased. Today, the Borkum Riff brand is the third largest on the Swedish market.
The ship in the design originates from a 17th-century engraving made by Johann Baptista Homann, who lived in Germany
.
The tobacco blend had been developed with an eye on the US pipe tobacco market. Borkum Riff, the Bourbon Whiskey blend, was successfully introduced in the US in 1969. Since then, new flavours and new packaging have been introduced. Today, Borkum Riff is also sold in India
, Canada
, Australia
, Switzerland
, Norway
, Spain
, New Zealand
, Japan
, France
, Italy
, Germany
as well as in several other markets around the world. Borkum Riff's biggest market is the United States
, where it was originally launched in 1969.
The brand comes in several different flavours:
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
by Swedish Match
Swedish Match
Swedish Match is a Swedish company based in Stockholm that makes snus, tobacco, cigars , Red Man Chewing Tobacco, dipping tobacco, matches and lighters. It was founded as Svenska Tändsticksaktiebolaget by Ivar Kreuger in 1917 in Jönköping...
.
History
Originally, 'Borkum Riff' was a lighthouseLighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
located at 53° 58' N, and 6° 22' E in Heligoland Bay off the Dutch coast in the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
. It was a landmark for seafarers and was well-known to Swedish radio listeners, as weather reports mentioned Borkum Riff several times a day. The former lightship called Borkum Riff was used from 1960 to 1964 as the first radio ship of Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica
Radio Veronica was an offshore radio station that began broadcasting in 1960, and broadcast from offshore for over fourteen years. It was set up by independent radio, TV and household electrical retailers in the Netherlands to stimulate the sales of radio receivers by providing an alternative to...
, which became the first off-shore radio station in the Netherlands.
During the 1960s, a pipe tobacco was launched in Sweden with brand name Borkum Riff. The tobacco was a rough cut blend of Virginia and Burley tobaccos. Initial sales were low but when a whiskey flavour was introduced, sales increased. Today, the Borkum Riff brand is the third largest on the Swedish market.
The ship in the design originates from a 17th-century engraving made by Johann Baptista Homann, who lived in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
The tobacco blend had been developed with an eye on the US pipe tobacco market. Borkum Riff, the Bourbon Whiskey blend, was successfully introduced in the US in 1969. Since then, new flavours and new packaging have been introduced. Today, Borkum Riff is also sold in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
as well as in several other markets around the world. Borkum Riff's biggest market is the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, where it was originally launched in 1969.
The brand comes in several different flavours:
- Borkum Riff Original
- Borkum Riff Bourbon Whisky
- Borkum Riff Cherry Liqueur
- Borkum Riff Scandinavian Mixture
- Borkum Riff Orange & Honey
- Borkum Riff Cherry Cavendish
- Borkum Riff Black Cavendish
- Borkum Riff Vanilla Cavendish
- Borkum Riff Champagne
- Borkum Riff Highland Malt Whiskey
- Borkum Riff Special Mixture No. 8
- Borkum Riff GOLD Cherry & Vanilla
- Borkum Riff GOLD Malt Whiskey
- Borkum Riff Admiral's Flake Vanilla
- Borkum Riff Admiral's Flake Cherry
- Borkum Riff Genuine Pure Tobacco