Alcohol in Sweden is more expensive than in most European countries
The portal Sweden.ru explains how Sweden's relationship with alcohol works.
1. Alcohol is sold only in special stores
In Sweden, you cannot buy alcohol stronger than 3.5% in a regular supermarket. There are also no private liquor stores. All sales are through Systembolaget, a state-owned chain of stores established more than 50 years ago. The idea behind Systembolaget is that alcohol sales are handled by a company whose goals do not include profit or sales growth. All state stores are closed at night and on Sundays (and open only half a day on Saturdays), and they are prohibited from running discount promotions—no "2 for 1" or "third bottle free."
Cashiers do not sell alcohol to customers under 20. However, they may ask even 40-year-olds to show ID—this is an everyday occurrence, not a joke. Swedes do not refuse; on the contrary, they happily share this on social media, taking the cashier's request as a compliment.
Another important function of Systembolaget is education. The store chain's advertising mainly aims to make people aware of the harm alcohol does to health, how many calories are in a mug of beer or a glass of wine, and why you should not help minors buy alcohol. The store chain's website includes not only a section on new products but also, for example, a list of questions and answers on how parents can best talk to their children about alcohol.
Systembolaget is a direct tool for implementing state alcohol policy. The company is prohibited from favoring one producer over another (for example, that is why there are no refrigerators for beer in stores—not all varieties would fit, and singling out some would be against the rules), but this does not mean that Systembolaget cannot be used to restructure alcohol consumption. In the second half of the 20th century, Swedes began to shift en masse from hard liquor to wine (more on this later).
However, do not think that Systembolaget is a place where sellers will look at you askance and consultants will try to make you leave empty-handed. Despite some peculiarities, these are ordinary stores—perhaps just a little busier on Fridays and Saturdays. Possibly even more customer-oriented: for example, if you want to buy Georgian wine and it is not in stock, Systembolaget is obliged to take a personal order for it, because you cannot buy it otherwise.
An important fact for those planning to visit Sweden: alcohol is sold at Systembolaget from age 20, and in restaurants from age 18. This is not a bureaucratic error—it is simply easier to control consumption in restaurants.
Another feature of Systembolaget is prices. Alcohol in Sweden is more expensive than in most European countries due to taxes. For example, the tax on a liter of wine up to 15% strength in 2018 is more than 26 kronor (about 2.5 euros).
2. Sweden is a northern country. And here they drink hard liquor
Northern countries are traditionally associated with the consumption of hard liquor, and Sweden is no exception. Although overall alcohol consumption here is lower than in Finland, Russia, Poland, and the Baltic states, historically people here mainly drank strong beverages. And what else to drink with herring and potatoes? Of course, snaps—a general term for strong alcoholic drinks distilled from potatoes or grains with added herbs or other flavorings. Each region has its own recipe, and often more than one, so there can be many different bottles of snaps at Systembolaget.
Snaps is traditionally drunk from small stemmed glasses (regular ones will do, too) and in a large company that drinks in "rounds" with the obligatory toast Skål. It is not necessary to clink glasses loudly, but you must raise your glass and look into the eyes of each participant.
As in other northern countries, it is not customary to drink in the middle of the week (a semi-exception is Wednesday, "little Friday," when office colleagues are more likely to go for an afterwork).
Friday and Saturday parties with lots of alcohol, on the other hand, are common. Punctual Swedes may plan such a "meeting with colleagues" many weeks in advance—and drink too much simply because it is not good to break away from the group, and collectivism is sacred to Swedes. That is why you are most likely to see tipsy citizens somewhere in Stockholm or Gothenburg late on Friday or Saturday evening.
3. The consumption of snaps gave rise to a culture of drinking songs
Snapsvisor ("snaps songs") is a general term for short songs sung during a feast. Some are popular in certain regions, others are known by virtually everyone. Fun fact from Swedish Wikipedia: in 1957, after winning the World Hockey Championship, not all Swedes could remember the words to the national anthem, so they sang "Helan går," the most popular of the snaps songs. There was no problem remembering its words.
"Helan går" is most often recalled when you need to hum something Swedish or explain how Swedes behave at the festive table. It is easy to remember: it has a refrain "hopp faderallan lej" ("tra-la-la"), and its essence is to drink the "whole" (glass).
4. In the 20th century, Sweden became a wine country
In 2017, wine accounted for 42% of alcohol consumption in Sweden (in terms of pure alcohol), twice as much as spirits. In recent years, the gap has been steadily widening – over a decade, wine's share grew by 4 percentage points, while spirits fell by five. In the mid-20th century, this would have been unimaginable – wine was an expensive, privileged drink (except for Christmas mulled wine, but more on that below). Moreover, a hundred years ago, Swedes mainly preferred port wines and other fortified wines – their imports in 1920, for example, accounted for 69% of total wine imports.
In the mid-20th century, Swedes began switching to wines for several reasons: increased taxes on snaps and Systembolaget's campaign to promote wine. Equality also played a significant role in changing Swedes' preferences: snaps was associated with a "masculine" drink that was "immoral" for women to consume. As gender roles began to blur, alcohol consumption among women increased – snaps ceased to be considered "immoral," and beer or wine even more so.
Due to climatic conditions, Sweden produces very little wine. But that doesn't mean there is none at all – in southern Sweden, private vineyards have been developing since the late 20th century, experimenting with northern varieties. Fun fact from Swedish law: due to the state monopoly on alcohol sales, Swedish producers cannot sell wine directly at their wineries. So there are three options: supply it to restaurants, send it to Systembolaget and undergo a complex certification process there, or open a store, for example, in neighboring Denmark (from where wine can be ordered online).
5. Mulled wine is as much a part of winter as the Lucia celebration and gingerbread cookies
In November and December, wine consumption increases sharply – at Christmas markets, in cafes, and simply in kitchens, mulled wine is prepared (and by the way, this word is not used here; in Swedish, mulled wine is "glögg").
The tradition of drinking hot wine when it's cold came from continental Europe in the Middle Ages and took root well in Scandinavia – and when the rest of Europe began to forget about it, glögg recipes started appearing in Swedish cookbooks.
At home, raisins, cinnamon, almonds, or nutmeg are added to regular wine (white is possible, but mostly red), but more often Swedes buy ready-made mixes. There are hundreds of them, and every year new varieties appear at Systembolaget, and new recipes are published in newspapers. The top 10 of 2018 includes glögg with blueberry flavor, hints of cognac, and even with Italian limoncello liqueur.
6. Beer in Sweden is not a national drink
First, it must be remembered that Swedes have several words for beer. There is starköl ("strong") – with an alcohol content above 3.5%, sold only at Systembolaget. There is folköl ("folk") – with 2.25-3.5% alcohol, which can be bought in regular stores from age 18. There is also lättöl – literally "light" beer with up to 2.25% alcohol, and by the way, it has zero tax.
Second, the popularity of beer in Sweden is not comparable, for example, to neighboring Germany, where consumption culture was shaped over centuries and was not interrupted by various state bans (in 1917-1923, for instance, Sweden completely banned the sale of starköl).
And finally, third – the words "not very much" in this case mean that in the consumption structure, starköl together with folköl occupy only a slightly smaller share than wine. Fun fact that helps understand Swedes better: folköl is gradually losing popularity – since the beginning of the 20th century, its consumption has dropped by more than a third. And this despite the fact that "folk" beer is much more accessible than regular beer.
As in other parts of Europe, Sweden saw the emergence of its own "craft" breweries in the 20th century, working with small volumes. According to Systembolaget, alongside the usual craft ale types (e.g., IPA or APA), the Belgian tradition of adding berries or fruits – and even cocoa or coffee – to beer has gained great popularity in Sweden. In total, Sweden now has over 300 breweries; per capita, only the UK has more in Europe, and their number has increased tenfold over ten years.
7. A complete ban on alcohol sales – through a referendum
Sweden has held fewer than a dozen national referendums – by direct vote, Swedes decided whether to join the EU (they joined), whether to adopt the euro (they didn't), whether to change left-hand traffic to right-hand traffic (they changed). And along with this – whether to introduce a ban on alcohol sales.
The vote took place in 1922, and who knows if this text could have been written if the "no" option had not won with a result of 51 to 49. The voting results show how divided Sweden was on this issue – all northern regions supported the ban, almost all southern ones voted against. Large cities also opposed the ban – supporters were mainly rural residents. In the capital Stockholm, over 86% of voters opposed it.
That referendum, a monument to failed radical solutions to the "alcohol question," entered culture in the form of a modernist poster with visual agitation. For example, even crayfish campaigned against it – in case of a ban, there would be nothing to eat them with.
As a result, until 1955, the country had a system of "ration cards" (motbokssystemet), well known to those who experienced the USSR. Each resident could buy only a certain amount of alcohol per month, and, for example, men were allowed to buy more alcohol than women.
8. The growth in alcohol consumption has stopped
From the end of the 20th century until 2004, alcohol consumption in Sweden grew – due to the liberalization of laws from joining the EU, the common economic space with Europe, and the popularity of alcohol among young people. It was in 2004 that the modern record for consumption was set – more than 10.5 liters of pure alcohol per year for every resident of the country over 15 years old. Since then, consumption has been slowly declining – in 2017, the same figure was 9 liters. As explained at Systembolaget, this is equivalent to 6-7 bottles of beer per week. The only category of alcohol that is consumed in absolute numbers more than in 2004 is wine.
In general, Swedes are not alien to anything human: they love and know how to drink. The main thing – when raising a glass with Swedish friends or in their homeland, do not forget about responsibility and respect the law. Skål!