Norlan - Chapter I

The Norlan Glasses

Norlan is a brand dedicated to elevating the whisky drinking experience through design, science, and ritual

The company was founded in 2015, launching the signature product, the Norlan Whisky Glass.

The award winning Norlan glass the RAUK tumbler and VAWE mizuwari each in turn address the traditions and behaviours of the whisky rituals, while adjusting the experience of the whisky aromatics.

Photography - Marinó Thorlacius & Dan Zoubek

―
Norlan Whisky Glass
Norlan VAILD
Rauk Heavy Tumbler
Rauk VAILD
Vawe Mizuwari Glass
Awards

Norlan Whisky Glass

Combining design, science, and sociology for the perfect whisky drinking experience.

It pulls you from the heights of intellect, and from the girth of emotion, closing your perspective down to meet at the point of immediacy, transporting you deep into the heady spirit that so many people over so many centuries crafted, for you to just take as your own, right now, and in that intense moment of pleasure.

The Norlan glass was conceived in response to the void of modern, design-forward aesthetics in the traditional whisky landscape, and the tendency for many nosing glasses to concentrate the ethanol vapors, thereby masking the complex set of aromas for which whisky is renown.

To address these issues, a double-walled vessel was designed; the interior form of which evolved through the application of biomimicry and fluid dynamics, becoming an optimal surface to create waves within the bowl when the spirit is swirled.

These waves increase the volatility of the whisky, releasing the ethanol and elevating the presence of aromas.

When we came in from the North, we brought a new idea over the golden seas.

From the Holy Grail, past the Czech glass makers, we have traversed time to get from the burned clay to the graphic new digital, that we apply the binary art of this robo-coco period in which we exist.

We are the makers of tomorrow, from where we stand today.

And now we watch, as the waves wrap around the transparent walls of the Norlan Glass

Norlan Presentation

Film and Edit - Move Studios Berlin
Music - Helgi Svavar Helgason

The Norlan Whisky Glass has been developed through a process of combining fluid dynamics modeling and bio-mimicry, out of a love for whisky matched with a frustration by the poor glassware available to whisky enthusiasts.

By marrying a scientifically performing inside with an aesthetically beautiful outside, our glass is designed to capture whisky’s complex perfumes and deliver them to the senses better than any existing product.

NORLAN VAILD

BLACK EDITION

Emergent. Emerging. And from darkness now loomed the future.

The VAILD Edition of the Norlan Whisky Glass was developed to create a unique blind nosing experience. The impenetrable black outer wall conceals, while the inner wall reveals.

From within, the black outer wall creates a perfect recursive infinity mirror—stray photons that find their way into this light trap bounce around like some cosmic ballet, taking with it the whisky, uninterrupted, wholly reflected, and refracted back into itself.

Long fins through the mist, parting air and altitude, so came the arks.
Revealed. Revered. Impenetrable, hard, black.
Momentous. Monolithic. Straining, pushing back.
The compression, several different and new atmospheres hitting the bow.
And as we came lower we saw nothing. But the wind. The wind moves things.
Pressure. The dip in mass rocked us. A broken beat staccato of etherial turbulence.
And now, the reveal. Everything known, at all moments, the single point of blinding light... exposed, self reflecting, photovoltaic.
Existing in two places at once.
A mirror upon a mirror upon a mirror, no minor reflection.
For it was once, and nevermore VAILD.
The Blind.
And the light.

Norlan Vaild Presentation

Film and Edit - Move Studios Berlin
Music - Helgi Svavar Helgason

And now all we have to guide us is the story of aroma, stimulated by heroic molecular vibrations and the awesome power of a fully operational olfactory receptor set.

RAUK HEAVY TUMBLER

The Rauk Heavy Tumbler is the meeting point of advanced digital design, inventive production techniques and the intimate whisky ritual.

Taking its name from the Old Scottish word for “Rock,” the glass has been developed for whisky drinkers who prefer their spirit chilled, whether with an ice sphere or simply on the rocks. And for those who revel in the crafted cocktail, the tumbler features a core innovation. Inside the glass lies an array of extruded chevrons radiating from the center, which serve to provide friction points for gripping ingredients used in muddled drinks.

Circumventing the ornamentation of traditional cut crystal, the entire surface of the tumbler, inside and out, is born in a single blinding moment of machine-pressing the molten crystal into a complex five-part mold. The result is a pure expression of material and form that somehow feels not of this time, with geometric facets and edges blending organically into curved surfaces that fascinate the eyes and play with the sense of touch.

When we set out to make this glass, we knew who we were making it for. You. The off-world galactic pilot, savoring that whisky on ice. But designing not just another rocks glass is about the perversion of form. We had to push it to excite not just you, but us. And so every element, each curve, edge, angle, and facet of this glass was meticulously considered over two years of development. You don’t spend two years making just another glass; you spend it making the absolute, nonpareil, heaviest tumbler you can.

Norlanglass20180057 4teasernorlan_2018.jpg

Norlanglass20180061 2teasernorlan_2018.jpg

Rauk Fabrication

Let’s start by describing the form, the production, and the challenges of making such an object.
We work from the ground up. The base of this glass is one of the most unique you’re likely to find, and not surprisingly, difficult to mass produce. Our makers in the Czech Republic pleaded with us to change it, simply allow them to “resolve the issues.” As usual… we didn’t relent.

The base, precision-modelled, touches down on four crystal points, making surface contact while giving the appearance of hovering – a satellite in spirit. Naturally, we wanted the heaviest glass you own to appear to float.

But glass cools at different rates depending on its thickness. As there is a dramatic difference between the thickness of the walls and the base of the tumbler, a precisely timed technique of cooling and turning must be choreographed before fire polishing the mold seams. If the glass cools too quickly the difference in thickness between the walls and base results in cracking. Cool it too slowly and the glass sinks on its feet.

This process is a delicate balancing act, testing the limits of production feasibility and the benevolence of the machine-press technicians. It is a glass ballet. A pop and lock of timing and intuition to make this heavy glass hover.

Turning to the sides, the triangular facets of the base evolve from the more organic, three-dimensional form that serves to elevate the glass above the table surface, to the triangular surfaces and creases that make the main outer surface—the part you want to touch with your hands. Moving upward, these iconic forms transition into the gently curving perimeter of the glass, finishing at the finely edged rim—the part you want to touch with your mouth.

Rauk Presentation

Film and Edit - Move Studios Berlin
Music - Helgi Svavar Helgason

RAUK HEAVY TUMBLER VAILD

Black Edition

The Heavy Tumbler is more than simply a striking rocks glass that you reveal to impress your friends and well wishers. The inner base hosts a specially developed multi-chevron cross-shaped extrusion, engineered to grip ingredients during the muddling process. The chevrons of this specific pattern evolved through dozens of design iterations in search of an elegant and ideal form to aid in the art of cocktail making. The goal was to grab hold of the waxy and slippery peels and arrest their movement while you, the cocktail maker, muddle them back to life.

The base of the Heavy Tumbler, precision-modeled, touches down on four crystal points, making surface contact while giving the appearance of hovering – a satellite in spirit. Naturally, we wanted the heaviest glass you own to appear to float. Turn the glass upside down, and the three-dimensional surface of the base reveals itself as a jewel-like compass, guiding you, fellow whisky traveler to your true north.

VAWE MIZUWARI GLASS

The Vawe Mizuwari Glass expresses the Japanese preference for the mixed whisky, water and ice combination

Its name is taken from the Old Scottish Dictionary word vawe, describing the motion of water in a rolling, surging fashion. Accordingly, the glass has been developed for the application of tall whisky drinks mixed with ice and soda, or simply water—mizuwari as the Japanese practice is called.

And for the occasions calling for a handcrafted cocktail, the glass features a core innovation. Inside lies an array of extruded chevrons radiating from the center, angled and engineered to provide friction for muddling soft herbs and citrus oils.