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When in Sweden…
Here I am, talking about travel again. Well, this will be mostly about wine, but let’s talk about travel first.
This was my third time visiting Sweden (all three times were for work reasons). My first visit was to Malmo, a town located in the southern part of Sweden close to Copenhagen, and that visit was fully documented here (and here is the bonus part about my day in Copenhagen).
My other two visits were to Gothenburg (also known as Göteborg), the second-largest city in Sweden and the birthplace of Volvo cars. Both times I stayed at the Gothia Towers Hotel. Here comes an interesting (funny?) part. As I made it to the hotel this time, I noticed a large amusement park called Liseberg right across from the hotel entrance, with a Ferris wheel and rollercoasters. While walking with someone to the hotel from the bus stop, I asked if the amusement park was just built, and in response I got a very surprised look and the answer that the park was there even 20 years ago. Turns out my first visit to Gothenburg was in January of 2018, and spending all of the light hours inside the building didn’t give me a chance to see what’s actually around. Kind of funny and strange, I know.
I also remember from the previous visit that I wanted to find a Swedish wine to try. I remember walking into a large liquor store close to the hotel and asking someone if they had any Swedish wine I could buy – and I remember the salesperson telling me apologetically that they didn’t have anything on hand, but that he would be happy to order the wine for me which would take some time to arrive – that, of course, didn’t work for my schedule. Coming back now gave me some sense of hope of finding the local wine to try and adding one more check mark to the Wines of the World table.
Once I got situated at the hotel, my next trip was a traditional walk to the supermarket. For the absolute majority of trips, this is my standard routine – I generally prefer to drink sparkling water in the room, and this is the easiest way to get it (not even the question of least expensive – in many cases, hotels simply can’t supply bottled sparkling water). I’m also always eager to see the wine shelves at the supermarket, to see what is there and at what price. In Sweden, however, it is a bit tricky – alcohol sales are a government monopoly – Systembolaget is the chain of stores that can sell alcohol and liquor in Sweden, and of course, they control the prices and the selection.
I visited the supermarket on Sunday, and Systembolaget stores are simply closed on Sunday (or at least the one I was near in Gothenburg). The supermarket actually offered wine – alcohol-free wine that is. I guess alcohol-free wine is a thing in Sweden, both locally produced (mostly from fruit, not grapes) and imported wines – and imported alcohol-free selection even included some familiar names, such as Campo Viejo, for example – you can see the sample selection in the pictures below:
Apparently, low-alcohol beverages are allowed for sale at the supermarket, as there was a good selection of beer, and I even got a few to enjoy later in the room. Moreover, beer was a drink of choice at many of my dinners – while traveling when it comes to the “by glass” selection, I usually prefer beer as it is generally cheaper than wine and more error-prone. I had a number of good local beers during this trip.
And speaking about dinners, some were good, some were barely okay, and some were absolutely stunning (okay, not “some”, just one), as I already wrote about my visit to SK Mat & Manniscor. Actually, outside of that spectacular dinner, I had the best dish at lunch when we stopped by some random Italian place – the wild mushroom risotto was so good I had to literally stop myself from leaking the bowl (no picture though).
Before I will inundate you with pictures of the wines, just a few images of the town. As I mentioned before, this time around I was able to see the amusement park, and my room on the 17th floor afforded pretty good views as well – here is a little assemblage for you.
As I told you before, finding the Swedish wine was an important mission, so I tried to accomplish that at the first opportunity – I only didn’t realize that Systembolaget simply closes at 7 pm, and my meetings are typically not done until almost 8. The first half of the week went by and Thursday was my last hope before I would have to fly back on Friday. I found a little break in the meetings around 5 pm and went to the store.
The store was nice and spacious. After I made a few circles on my own, I realized that I would need some help finding the Swedish wine I was looking for. I asked the lady working there for help – she didn’t look very confident at first but with the help of the computer she was able to locate 3 different Swedish wines – real wines, with alcohol and made from grapes! (Ah, I’m so easily excitable).
As a general observation, I saw a good number of wines at a reasonable price, around $10 or less (divide the price you see in Swedish krona by 10 or 11 – that will give you the price in dollars).
Some of the bottles looked like fun – if I were going on a hot date, I could’ve settled for this one with the lips:
There was a good selection of reasonably priced Champagne, at least considering how much Champagne now costs in the US:
Lots of reasonably priced wines from Italy, France, and Australia:
And here we are, the culmination point of the search – Swedish wines. These are quite expensive – yes, I understand it is not easy to grow grapes in Sweden.
I settled for the “second cheapest wine”, which amounted to the hefty $45 – but hey, the price we pay for our hobbies…
Once I got into the hotel, I had to find a way to quickly chill the bottle, as it was my last evening to taste it and I had no intention of checking my luggage because of a random bottle. I got ice from the machine, added water, and did my best to submerge the bottle into the tiny ice bucket…
Before we talk about the taste, let’s talk about the wine itself – 2021 Kullabergs Vingård Immelen (13.5% ABV, mostly Solaris grape). The winery is located in the southwest part of Sweden, on the Kullaberg peninsula which is also a nature reserve (sometimes called Cape Kullaberg). The Kullabergs vineyard was planted in 2006. One of the main grapes at the vineyard is called Solaris – the grape selected in Germany in 1975, specifically developed to cope with cold climates. The wine I got from the store was mostly made from Solaris, at least according to the back label, even though the only technical note I found on the website was for Immelen 2019 which had 86% Solaris and 7% each of two other grapes.
The wine was interesting. I wish I was able to fully chill it, but probably at around 55F it was showing a bit heavy, had notes of tropical fruit on the nose, plump and round body on the palate with a hint of grapefruit peel which offered a touch of bitter notes. Good acidity, and not a bad wine overall. It was reminiscent of Marsanne/Roussanne blends from the Southern Rhone if such a comparison would help. I’m happy I had an opportunity to taste this wine, add a checkmark to my wines of the world list, and a rare grape to the Hexavini journey. At $45, it is okay as once in a while exotic experience, but I will not pay this much for this wine a second time.
Here you are, my friends – a quick report from the trip to Sweden, mostly in pictures.
Hey, I heard Finland is starting to plant vines… guess what I will be hunting down next…
Restaurant Files: An Ultimate Dining Experience
As a food and wine lover, I know I can’t complain about the lack of great dining experiences. But great doesn’t necessarily mean memorable. I will give you a few minutes to reflect, but seriously, how many dining experiences have stuck in your memory? How many of those experiences were memorable because of the food and wine pairing?
I’m sure you know where I’m heading with this preamble. During my last trip to Sweden, I actually experienced the unique greatness of the food and wine singing together in perfect harmony – and I have to share that with you.
As was going on a business trip to Gothenburg, the second largest city in Sweden, a friend who was already there sent me a restaurant recommendation which he got locally from someone – SK Mat & Människor. I quickly looked at the website, which portrayed a very attractive image, saw that a reservation would be required and quickly made one, as my free time was very limited.
The day before, I decided to check the menu (I like coming to the restaurant prepared if possible) and discovered that the restaurant doesn’t have a menu per se – the restaurant offers two tasting menus with local seasonal ingredients – one with 4 courses and one with 6. The only other information was the required time – a 4-course dinner takes 2 hours, and a 6-course takes at least 2 and a half. Well, it is fun to be surprised, isn’t it?
Upon arrival we were quickly escorted to our table and presented with the printed menus that still didn’t provide much details – 2 tasting menus with available matching wine pairings – that’s it. We decided that 4 courses sounded good enough and let the magic begin.
Chefs at work
We were explained that everything at the restaurant is seasonal, locally made and procured. The restaurant has 3 open kitchens, one for cold appetizers, one for warm appetizers and entrees, and one for bread and desserts – yes, fresh bread is made at the restaurant.
The bread arrived first, a little basket with 3 types of bread, and butter which is also made daily at the restaurant, from fresh milk. Also, our first wine was poured – André Lurton Chateau Bonnet Réserve Bordeaux (Sauvignon Blanc/Sémillon), perfectly refreshing as a starter. Next, our first appetizer was presented at a table.
Here lies a problem with how much I can really share with you. The purpose of the dinner was to enjoy it, not to take detailed notes for the blog. I had no printed menu, and each dish was briefly presented by the chef, including all ingredients, spices, and cooking techniques – all within 30 seconds or so. I don’t know about you, but my memory definitely has its limits. Thus my descriptions will be lacking…
The first dish was a fish – I believe haddock (local, of course). I don’t remember any of the spices and condiments, but – the appetizer was brought to the table with a little bowl of grilled tomato broth (yep), and each one of our bowls received two tablespoons of such broth. The appetizer was very tasty and worked well with the wine.
The next wine was the 2020 Leopard’s Leap Culinaria Collection Chenin Blanc Franschhoek Valley South Africa. The wine had a beautiful, concentrated nose, and very good textural presence on the palate, something that good Chenin Blanc can usually deliver.
A warm appetizer was served with this dish – I guess it could be called a confit of artichoke – the artichoke was slowly cooked for a very long time, then deep fried and served with some effervescent cream. The dish was delicious, and pairing with the Chenin Blanc was excellent, with wine complementing and elevating every bite.
The choice of next wine was a bit surprising for me – 2021 Oakridge Over the Shoulder Pinot Noir Yarra Valley Australia. Of course, Australia produces Pinot Noir – but I would definitely look at other regions first if I would want to serve my guests Pinot Noir. The wine was tasty on its own, with a nice nose of smoke, plums, and violets and a firm texture on the palate, definitely on the tart side.
Just look at this color…
Seeing Pinot Noir I was guessing that our main course will be either duck or lamb. To my surprise, we were served local Swedish beef, prepared with celeriac (root of celery) three ways – as a purée, as a spice, and in some other form (sorry, see the note about my memorization skills above), served with the wine reduction sauce. And I don’t know how, but in this dish, taking a bite of food with a sip of that Pinot Noir was akin to some dark magic – remember the restaurant scene in “When Harry Met Sally”? Yeah, that type. Just magic.
Over wine pairing for dessert was essentially a dessert in itself – 2022 Prunotto Asti Spumante DOCG from Italy. The wine was beautiful, pleasantly sweet but with perfect acidity and light fizz, delicious on its own.
Our dessert was a combination of herbal sorbet and local Swedish strawberries. The sorbet was barely sweet and delightful, but taken with a sip of Asti Spumante … OMG (yeah, laugh all you want)… We both agreed that this was truly a “heaven on earth” type of experience… An amazing finish to an amazing meal.
Believe it or not, this dinner took a little bit more than two hours, and the flow of wine and food was such that we didn’t notice how the time had passed. Absolutely different experience compared to an average restaurant visit, where you look at the watch when the bill arrives and realize that you barely spent 50 minutes…
Here you are, my friends. If your travel will take you to Gothenburg, I can’t recommend SK Mat & Människor any higher. Visit, and you will understand.
Travel Diaries: Few Days in Malmö, Sweden
About a month ago, I shared with you, mostly in pictures, my experience of a few hours in the Copenhagen. Copenhagen visit was a lucky detour, but the actual destination of that trip was the city in the Southern Sweden called Malmö.
Okay, I’m not going all of a sudden talk about the history of Malmö, the capital and largest city of the Swedish county of Scania – everything you want to know you can find in the Wikipedia or other sources. I was there for long and grueling week-long meetings and really didn’t have time to freely roam around – most of my sightseeing was done during the lunch breaks. Nevertheless, I have tons of pictures, thanks to a very capable camera which is now in the pockets of most of the people all the time (yes, that would be an iPhone for you, Apple-loving people) – and I have my impressions from walking the streets and interacting with people.
I can summarize my impressions of 5 days in Malmö in 3 simple words: “I loved it”. That’s all I need to say, really. The streets, the city views, the people, the hotel, the food – that is truly a full summary.
I know that everyone’s perception is different, and more often than not, we get lucky in our endeavors (unfortunately, we often take it for granted, but this is not the subject of this post). Yes, my impressions are based on spending time in the area adjacent to the Malmö Central train station, in the radius of 20–25 minutes walking from that train station. Is life very different in the areas which are located an hour away from the train station and city center of Malmö or elsewhere in Sweden? Quite possible, but I will let you find out.
Anyone wants to play while waiting for the train?
I loved the way the town is architected. The old and authentic looking houses and buildings are perfectly intermixed with the new houses and buildings. The style of the new construction is modern and clean (it is Scandinavia, after all), but the old and the new work very well together.
Bicycles are everywhere. Lots and lots of bicycles are parked along the streets, there are lots of people riding them, and an absolute majority of the sidewalks have designated “lane” for bicycles where pedestrians are not allowed.
HSB Turning Torso – a marvel of engineering
And then people. Anyone I talked to had perfect English. Young and old, at the restaurants or on the streets, at the train station or a supermarket – people had no issues switching to a perfect English in a heart bit. I wouldn’t claim any special traveling prowess but having been to a few countries outside of the USA, I have some basis for the comparison – this experience was definitely unique and ultimately comforting (you can truly relax knowing that you will be understood if need to ask a question).
I stayed at Marriott Renaissance, and this was one of my absolutely favorite hotel experiences – very comfortable room, nicely appointed, with the temperature which can be easily adjusted – those who stay at the hotels, will understand my excitement, I’m sure; good size bathroom and everything in the working order. Nicely appointed interior throughout the hotel, and – all the service staff were a pleasure to talk to. Again, if you travel, you will understand my excitement. Excellent breakfast buffet, which appears small but has an outstanding variety of everything you need for a good breakfast (I suggest you will get it included in your room rate).
If I have a gripe with my trip, it would be food and, especially, the wine. Not the quality or quantity, no, not at all – but the price. You can’t find a bottle of wine at a restaurant which will be cheaper than $50 (most of the prices start from $60). Most of the beers will be $8+ per glass, and cheapest glass of wine (hard to find) will be around $12. When you look at the prices of the hard liquors, they look perfectly reasonable, until you understand that the prices are given for the 10 centiliters – there are about 3 centiliters in an ounce, and standard pour in the USA is 2 ounces, so what looked super-cheap at $4 or even $6, doesn’t look that attractive at $18 for the half of your typical pour. Food is also not cheap, so keeping your dinner at least around $60 with one glass of wine is not simple at all. But – pretty much everything we ate was very tasty, so I really don’t have a good reason to complain. And I have to say that if you chose to skip the full-service restaurants, there are plenty of inexpensive dining options – for instance, lots of small restaurants inside the train station, serving tasty food (this is where we had most of our lunches).
Here are the restaurants I’m happy to recommend if your travel will take you to Malmö:
Espresso House
Espresso House is a chain, similar to the US Starbucks – there are no Starbucks in Sweden. It is similar to Starbucks in the selection of the drinks, but beyond just that, also has very similar issues. Let me explain. I visited the Espresso House located on the plaza next to the Renaissance hotel. First, the barista made me wait for at least 5 minutes, just keep doing and doing something without paying any attention to my presence in front of the counter (the place is small, so yes, she saw me). Then, there was a list of various coffees available to order – from 4 or 5 different countries of origin – when I asked to explain me the differences, was quickly told to ignore the list as Brazilian coffee was the only one available anyway.
But – the ambiance of the sitting area on the second floor was very nice, and the whole place had a charm, so the service part was quickly forgotten as I was enjoying my cup of coffee and a pastry.
Hamnmästaren
Bagers plats 1
211 18 Malmö, Sweden
Ph: +46 72-865 96 68
Who would’ve thought that Malmö is a place for an American barbecue? And so it actually is! We stumbled across this little place, located close to the train station, in the old house on the Port Supervisor. The restaurant offers a good selection of beer and all the bbq “usual suspects” – pork, brisket, chicken. I ordered chili to start with and pulled chicken sandwich. Big mistake. The chili was huge in size and was mostly pulled pork with beans, generous and delicious. And when it came to the pulled chicken sandwich, I never saw more overstuffed sandwich in my life (keep trying to understand my logic of not taking any pictures; sigh) – and this was probably the very best smoked chicken I ever had too. Beware of the portion sizes – and this place is definitely worth a visit.
La Brasserie
Skomakaregatan 10
211 34 Malmö, Sweden
+46 40 12 21 00
A French style restaurant, as you can tell by the name. The reasonable selection at around $50 per bottle – my gripe is that those wines are mostly around $7 – $8 in retail (outside of Sweden, of course), but nevertheless. We had a bottle of Cotes du Rhome and a Corbieres, both from 2014 vintage and both nicely drinkable.
I asked for waitress’ recommendation for my main dish, deciding between steak tartar and a seafood soup, technically a bouillabaisse. She confidently replied: “seafood soup” (I wonder what was her criteria to suggest it).
The soup had a total of 3 mussels in it, and random pieces of fish, in somewhat heavy broth. Again, I’m not sure what was the basis for the recommendation for this dish, but I definitely found it underwhelming. Nevertheless, you might give it a try, may be seafood is not their specialty.
Bastard
Mäster Johansgatan 11
211 21 Malmö, Sweden
Ph: +46 40-12 13 18
French flair restaurant. Reservations are definitely recommended – it was almost a miracle that we got in on Wednesday, there were lots of people sent away.
Good list of beer and wine. I had nice French cider first, then a glass of house Rosé, very tasty.
The restaurant offers a tasting menu, which has to be shared by the table, which was what we took. The tasting menu is not predefined, it is basically “whatever chef feels like today”.
The charcuterie was very tasty and steak tartar was outstanding. The followed by the two salads, both were simply a standout – Panzanella salad with boquerones, and then tomato and feta salad – the tomatoes were so succulent – I don’t know when was the last time I tasted tomatoes like that. Squash pizza was unusual and tasty and our last dish, individual servings of ham with mashed potatoes and fresh peas – was delicious to the last morsel. A very tasty experience.
Drumbar Scottish Pub & Tavern
Lilla Torg 9,
Hedmanska gården
211 34 Malmö, Sweden
+46 40 799 90
An English pub with outstanding selection of beer and scotch. I wish I realized that the word “drum” in the Drumbar relates to the actual “drum”, the whisky. The selection of drums was just spectacular – which I saw only as we were leaving. Yeah…
Had Innis & Gunn an IPA style beer on draft, but with more citrusy notes and not as biting as traditional IPA, and fish and chips for dinner (we are in the pub, right?) – may be the best I ever had – huge piece of cod, lightly fried, delicious sauce – outstanding. My colleague had pork shank which was absolutely perfect – rich, flavorful, fall-off-the-bone with crispy skin – another standout. An excellent place well worthy of anyone’s attention.
That’s all I wanted to share, with you, my friends. If your travel will take you to Malmö, I hope you will find these notes useful. If you’ve been to Malmö recently, I would be glad to compare the notes. Cheers!
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