All posts tagged: Sweden

Pushing the limits – Grape growing and winemaking in Sweden

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A few weeks ago I met successful asset manager Christer Wachtmeister for a coffee in Stockholm. The reason for visiting him was to find out about his hobby: grape growing and winemaking in Sweden. If some years ago the idea that grapes could grow in Sweden might have seemed far-fetched, today with global warming and a thriving sparkling wine production in the United Kingdom, Swedish wine comes as no real surprise. According to the Swedish monopoly Systembolaget, it is thought that there are now approximately 40 hectares of land under vine cultivated by some 250 producers. Official figures for 2009 from the Swedish Board of Agriculture state that Sweden produced 17’859 litres of wine for commercial use (6’695 litres of red, 7’737 litres of white and 3’427 litres of rosé wine) from a vineyard area of 20 hectares. Most of the vineyards are situated in the south of the country in Skåne (the southern tip of Sweden) and on the islands of Öland and Gotland (in the Baltic sea off the south-east coast). There are a …

Stockholm – Lights and mulled wine

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Up here in the North the cold and darkness have firmly set in. The days now start in the dark and by 2pm the light is beginning to fade. Thick coats and gloves are a necessity. To counter this gloominess the Swedes have lamps on all their window ledges to softly brighten up their houses. In Advent the atmosphere is especially cosy with candles and illuminated red or white paper stars hanging at the windows, fires roaring in wood stoves and much drinking of mulled wine, here called glögg (from glödga “to heat, to mull”). Mulled wine is a tradition that goes back to the Middle Ages. Spices and heat enhance the warming effect of alcohol and improve a poor wine’s drinkability. Red wine is usually used for mulled wine and the traditional spices are cinnamon and cloves. Mulled wine – Glühwein in German and vin chaud in French – is enjoyed during the Christmas and New Year festivities but also whenever the weather calls for a hot, sweet, alcoholic beverage. In the mountains, on the slopes, it is …