Who knew the Swedes are not allowed to buy wine in a grocery store? Probably everyone in Sweden,…read morebut not us. But no matter, the Systembolaget (which is Swedish for "very clean, even sterile, snack-free liquor store") is right next door. Some things we noticed: one of us (Englishwoman) was a bit taken aback by the man with no shirt on gleefully purchasing booze. Others of us thought the prices were very reasonable. And yet others found the nice young guy with the perfect English who appeared not to actually drink surprisingly helpful -- everything he recommended was very good. Overall a deeply satisfying cultural experience, just what we came to Sweden for.

This is the self-service liquor store in Huddinge…read more When I was there the service was fast, efficient, and it was easy to find what I wanted (a bottle of Pol Roger as a gift - hey, if it was good enough for the Queen Mom, it's good enough for me!). I was actually pleasantly surprised to see a pretty large, well-equipped department of sparkling wines and champagnes.