Drinking in Bars and Restaurants

Alcohol in bars and restaurants is pricey, but not quite as outrageous as some would have you believe (I heard stories of €12-a-pint before I came). Examples (in a bar):

In bars, whiskey is sold by the centilitre starting at 15 SEK/cl for a standard Irish whiskey (like Jameson); the sky's the limit for old single malts. A traditional measure in Ireland is ¼ gill; (in Britain, it's a bit smaller at ⅕ gill). A gill (pronounced like the name “Jill”, not like the gills on a fish) is a ¼ of an imperial pint, so an Irish measure is 35ml (568/16). This all means that an ordinary Irish measure (if you could get it) of bog-standard whiskey would work out at about €5.90.

Mixed drinks and cocktails are sold in 2cl and 4cl. So, if you're asked whether you want a “two” or a “four” when you order a vodka & lime, you'll know what they mean. 4cl of gin with a splash of tonic works out at €7.45.

Drinking at Home

To take home (i.e. for consumption off the premises), you can buy weak beers and ciders (up to 3.5% ABV) almost anywhere, including supermarkets and convenience stores. There are local beers, and some international brands brewed under licence in Sweden, with 3.5% and/or 2.8% versions, Carlsberg and Guinness being notable examples. A 500ml can of 2.25% cider is 10 SEK in the convenience store across the road from me. A 6-pack of 500ml cans of Carlsberg 3.5% in Hemköp is 58 SEK.

Weakened Beer is Widely Available

I tried the 3.5% canned draught Guinness and a selection of Falcon 3.5% beers and they're OK: they taste the same as regular beer to me. Personally, I didn't like the Falcon weissbier (it tastes like tinned catfood smells), but that's nothing to do with the alcohol content.

To buy anything stronger than 3.5%, you must go to Systembolaget.

Stories about Systembolaget having a very limited selection are entirely false: there is an excellent selection of wines, beers, and spirits like any similar-sized premises anywhere in Europe, and I've never seen anything like the range of beers they have there.

Wine is about the same price as in Ireland (usually considered expensive). A 70cl bottle of no-name plonk starts at about 48 SEK (~€5.40). Something like Faustino VII is about 70 SEK (~€7.90), and reasonably decent everyday wines can be had for around 100 SEK (~€11.25). You can, of course, spend a fortune if you wish.

Ordinary spirits (vodka, gin, whiskey) cost between 200 (~€22.50) and 300 (~€33.75) SEK per bottle. Gilbey's Gin sits at the lower end with Jameson, surprisingly enough, at the upper end of that range. A bottle of Smirnoff is something like 240 SEK (~€27.00). A bottle of low-end single malt can be had for around 400 SEK.

Beer prices in Systembolaget are not much different from the supermarket, but the beer is “proper” beer, at 4.2% ABV, or starköl (lit. strong beer) at anything from 5.0% to a staggering 10.2% ABV at prices between 8.20 (~€0.95) and 18 SEK (~€2.05) for a 500ml can. Regular 4.2% beers brands that I recognise hover around 12 (~€1.35) SEK per 500ml can, +/- 2 SEK (~€0.25).

Considering that the tax on beer is 13 SEK (€1.50) per litre, I wonder what the stuff being sold for 16.40 SEK (€2.10) per litre must be like? I'll try some and let you know.