Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
companiment to a warm cup of
glögg,
available at kiosks everywhere in winter, is a
pep-
parkaka
(gingerbread biscuit) or a
lussekatt
(saffron bun).
During Sweden's short, intense summers, many people hit the countryside for lazy holi-
days and alfresco noshing. Summer lunch favourites include various
inlagd sill
(pickled
herring) with
knäckebröd
(crispbread), strong cheese like the crumbly
Västerbottens ost,
boiled potatoes, diced chives and cream, strawberries, plus a finger or two of
snaps
and
some light beer 'to help the fish swim down to the stomach'. Towards the end of summer,
Swedes celebrate (or commiserate) its passing with
kräftskivor
(crayfish parties), eating
kräftor
boiled with dill, drinking
snaps
and singing
snapsvisor
(drinking songs).
For those with a sweet tooth, the lead-up to Lent means one thing: the
semla
bun. A
wickedly decadent concoction of a wheat-flour bun crammed with whipped cream and al-
mond paste, it was traditionally eaten on
fettisdagen
(Fat Tuesday). These days, it under-
mines diets as early as January.
Drinks
In the early days, when Stockholm was a rough port town full of stumbling sailors, alcohol
taxes were levied according to where you happened to be when you fell down drunk or
threw up. (These days, the same method can be used to decide which bars to frequent - or
avoid.) Liquor laws and customs have changed a bit since those days, motivated not least
by Sweden's need to conform more closely to EU standards. But there are still a few
guidelines to navigate when pursuing adult beverages in Sweden.
Öl
(beer) is ranked by alcohol content; the stronger the beer, the higher its price and,
generally speaking, the more flavour it has. Light beers (
lättöl;
less than 2.25%) and 'folk'
beers (
folköl;
2.25% to 3.5%) account for about two-thirds of all beer sold in Sweden;
these can be bought in supermarkets. Medium-strength beer (
mellanöl;
3.5% to 4.5%) and
strong beer (
starköl;
over 4.5%) can be bought only at outlets of the state-owned alcohol
store, Systembolaget, or in bars and restaurants. 'Systemet', as it's often called, is also the
only place (other than bars and restaurants) to buy hard liquor or wine.
Much like North American domestic brews, the everyday Swedish beer produced by
mass breweries like Falcon, Åbro, Pripps and Spendrups is notable only for its complete
lack of distinctive flavour. Happily, the range of good microbrews available has drastically
improved in recent years. (Look for Jämtlands brewery's Fallen Angel bitter, anything
from Nynäshamns Ångbryggeri or the Wisby line from Gotlands brewery.) Imports from
the rest of Europe are also much easier to find than in pre-EU days. In bars and restaurants,
