Credits: Helsinki Partners, Camilla Bloom
From coffee to lonkero, sauna beer, glögi, and unique spirits – Finns really do love their drinks. And chances are, you will too.
With pure Nordic nature and some of the cleanest water on Earth, drinks in Finland stand out for both their taste and quality. It’s no wonder visitors often leave feeling thirsty for more. Here’s your guide to Finnish beverages and drinks. Cheers, or as we say in Finland: Kippis!
Coffee doesn't come from Finland but Finns drink more coffee than any other nation in the world. From morning to evening, coffee, kahvi, is an essential part of all social gatherings, from work meetings to milestone celebrations.
The most popular coffee is filter coffee, and Finns often prefer lighter roasts over darker ones. You might want to ask for milk (maito) or sugar (sokeri ) – unless you prefer your coffee black (mustana). The most common milk alternative is oat milk (kauramaito). Don’t forget to enjoy a bun (pulla) or a cinnamon roll (korvapuusti) with your coffee! Filter coffee is served almost everywhere, but if you’re after a specialty coffee, it’s best to find a café, kahvila.
If you arrive on Finnair, chances are you’ll get a taste of blueberry juice already on board. Berries are all around in Finland, and they’re bursting with flavour. Nordic summers are short but full of light and that’s why berries ripened under the Midnight Sun are almost concentrated in taste and vitamins.
Blueberries, bilberries, lingonberries, strawberries, raspberries, cloudberries, currants, cranberries... when it comes to juice, you’re spoiled for choice. Foraging wild berries, such as bilberries, lingonberries and cloudberries, is a popular activity in Finland. You can even join a guided berry picking tour.
Sea buckthorn juice is another must-try. This thorny shrub grows in Finland’s rugged coast, and its orange berries are full of C and E vitamin. The taste is strong, so this is best enjoyed as a healthy shot in the morning. In autumn, it’s apple juice season. Apple is the most popular fruit in Finland, and you will find beautiful apple orchards in the south, especially in the Åland islands.
Wine can be made of berries, too. Finland’s berries are especially suitable for winemaking, as their taste is so intense. Berries used can be currants, strawberries, bilberries, raspberries, lingonberries and cloudberries. Sugar must be added in the winemaking process, and often berry wines tend to be on the sweeter side. If you happen to buy a bottle as a souvenir, enjoy it fresh – berry wines don’t get better with age.
Berry wineries can be found all over Finland, and most of them are small, family operated farms. Perhaps the most traditional place to try berry wines is the Valamo Monastery in Eastern Finland. This orthodox monastery is known for it’s winemaking, and they welcome visitors for tastings. In Hollola, in southern Finland, Ainoa Winery uses European winemaking traditions and Finnish berries to create internationally recognized, award-winning berry wines.
Finns have also come up with Nordic alternatives for sparkling wine. Sparkling drinks made with birch or spruce have a delicate, aromatic, and unique taste. A sparkling drink made with currant leaves, lehtikuohu, has become a popular non-alcoholic alternative in Finnish parties.
You will quickly discover that beer, olut, is the most popular alcoholic drink in Finland. Finns are especially fond of light, pale lagers. The biggest breweries are Sinebrychoff, Hartwall, and Olvi, and their lagers – such as Karhu, Koff, Lapin Kulta, and Sandels – dominate the bar taps. Beer is an essential part of sauna culture, too.
Finland has a long tradition of beer making. Sahti is a traditional, unfiltered Finnish beer that has been brewed on Finnish farms for centuries. This ancient drink is believed to date back more than 2000 years. It’s a dark, sweet, and strong brew made of barley, water, yeast and some rye, sometimes with juniper and hops added for flavour. Today, sahti is recognized as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG) product by the European Union. Another traditional beer is kotikalja, home-brewed beer. This malty and sweet beverage is low in alcohol, and it used to be a popular drink with meals at home and can still be found in some traditional restaurants.
Today, craft beers are gaining popularity, especially in urban areas. Small, local breweries can be found all over Finland, offering interesting, high-quality beers to discover. Their taprooms are well-worth visiting, and many bars include local specialties in their selection.
Finnish long drink, lonkero, is a gin-based, low-alcohol beverage invented for the Helsinki Summer Olympics in 1952. With foreign travellers flocking to the capital, there was a need for a pre-mixed cocktail – a tasty drink that could be served quickly. The refreshing combination of gin and grapefruit soda became so popular that Finns never stopped enjoying it. These days, lonkero can be found in all corners of the country from supermarkets to bars in a variety of flavours.
When thinking about Finnish spirits, most will think of vodka – and rightly so. Distilled with some of the purest water in the world and grains grown under the midnight sun, Finnish vodka is known for its high quality. Especially Finlandia Vodka is recognized all over the world for its smooth taste and glass bottles inspired by Arctic glaciers.
Finland also has a growing craft gin scene, with local distilleries creating award-winning, distinctive gins. Kyrö Distillery is perhaps the most famous. Their Gin & Tonic, served with cranberries and rosemary, has become a modern classic. This innovative distillery uses rye and local wild herbs, but also elements like wood smoke, peat, and oak barrels to give their products a uniquely Finnish flavour. Other notable gin distilleries include Arctic Blue Beverages and Helsinki Distilling Company.
The cocktail scene in Finland is booming, too. In bigger cities you’ll be spoiled for choice, from hidden speakeasies to sleek lounge bars and refined craft cocktail spots. Finnish cocktail bars are often inspired by nature and seasonal ingredients. Don’t be surprised to find drinks crafted with wild herbs, Arctic berries, spruce, juniper, birch – or even tar, terva.
Sima, Finnish mead, is a traditional drink that celebrates the arrival of spring. Refreshing and sweet, this lightly sparkling beverage is made with water, sugar, lemon, and yeast. Raisins might be added, too. Many Finns prepare sima at home, but you’ll also find it in supermarkets and restaurants. Sima is best enjoyed with sugar-coated doughnuts and it’s an essential part of Vappu (May Day) celebrations.
In early winter, glögi marks the beginning of the Christmas season in Finland. Glögi is the Finnish version of mulled wine. It’s traditionally made with red berry juice or wine and fragrant spices such as cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. A lighter glögi might be made with apple juice, spices, and white wine. These days, there are plenty of modern variations, and many restaurants and bars give glögi their own special twist. You'll find both alcoholic and non-alcoholic options also in supermarkets from Helsinki to Lapland.